


Blast From The Past

by navywife97



Category: The Rookie (TV 2018)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Drama & Romance, F/M, Family Drama, Long Lost/Secret Relatives, Murder Mystery, Mystery, On the Run, Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-24
Updated: 2020-08-30
Packaged: 2021-03-06 14:13:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 28,901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26090200
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/navywife97/pseuds/navywife97
Summary: Officer Tim Bradford has finally popped the question to his former rookie, Officer Lucy Chen, and they move in together. But on their first night living together, sixteen year old runaway Cheyenne Bradford shows up on their doorstep, claiming that Tim is her father...and she has the birth certificate to back it up. As Tim and Lucy and the team unlock Cheyenne's secrets, they learn that she's on the run from a killer...a killer who will do whatever he has to do to keep his secrets safe.
Relationships: Tim Bradford & Lucy Chen
Comments: 48
Kudos: 23





	1. Moving In

Officer Tim Bradford was loading the last of his fiancee’s boxes into his truck. After finally proposing to his former rookie, Officer Lucy Chen, something everyone was hoping for but thought would never happen, Tim and Lucy were moving in together. Lucy was moving into Tim’s house and giving up her apartment, now that her former roommate, Officer Jackson West, was living with his boyfriend, Sterling. Tim took the last box from Lucy’s arms and packed it inside his truck bed. He jumped down from the truck bed, and closed the door to it. He turned and looked at Lucy, grinning at her. “You ready, Boot?” She gave him a quick kiss and smiled at him. “Let me go take one last quick look around.” Tim nodded. “Ok.” Tim got into his truck and started up the ac, scrolling through his missed text messages, as Lucy dashed inside and up the stairs to her apartment to take one last look around. 

She found Jackson standing at the kitchen counter, giving the place one last wistful glance. Lucy came up to him and hugged him. “You ok, roomie?” Jackson smiled and nodded. “Of course. I’m really happy for you and Tim. You have no idea how happy...we all are. It’s just...you and I had some really good times here, didn’t we?” Lucy smiled and nodded. “Yeah, we did. But it’s onto better things now, for both of us!” Jackson pulled her into another hard hug, and sniffled. Lucy grinned and rolled her eyes. “Jackson, I’m moving down the street, not out of the country...and besides, you moved out first.” He sighed. “I know, I know...it just feels like an end of an era.” Lucy hugged him back. “It is...and it’s the start of another era...between Tim’s house, John’s house, and Sterling’s fabulous mansion, we’re going to have some killer house parties!” Jackson couldn’t help but laugh at that. “That’s true! C’mon...let’s get this show on the road. Tim promised us all pizza and alcohol after we get this stuff over to his house.” Lucy nodded and she and Jackson walked out of the apartment they had once shared together. 

About fifteen minutes later, They were standing in front of Tim’s house. Lucy was helping him unload boxes from his truck and bring them into his house. The rest of the crew were on their way. As they walked inside with the boxes and put them in the guest room, for now, Tim pulled Lucy into his arms and kissed her deeply. She moaned as she melted against him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his brow against hers. “I’ve been thinking, Boot…” Lucy smiled at him, and sent him a heated look, making him laugh. “No, not that...I mean yeah, always that, but that’s not what I was referring to right this second.” Lucy eased back from him and looked at him. “What’s up?” Tim glanced around the house. “I’m not sure you should unpack everything.” Lucy’s face faltered as Tim realized she had taken what he meant the wrong way. “No...Luce...that’s not what I meant either. I mean...what do you think about us finding our own place?” Lucy smiled at him...she still didn’t get it. “Ummm...isn’t that what we’re doing right now?” Tim rolled his eyes and shook his head. “No...you’re moving into my house. I mean, if you really like this place, we’ll keep it. But I was thinking...what if we looked for a new place?” Lucy squealed in excitement and threw her arms around his neck. Tim laughed as Lucy latched onto him. “So, that’s a yes?” Lucy vigorously nodded. Then she eased back, frowning at Tim. “But...I thought you liked this house?” Tim sighed. “Honestly, no, I never really did like it...Isabel was the one that wanted this place so badly. After the divorce, I got the house, and I just kind of stayed here for practical reasons, since it’s so close to work. But no, this place isn’t my dream house. If you like it we can stay here...I just thought…” Lucy cut him off with another deep kiss. “I don’t care where we live Tim, as long as it’s together. But yes, if you want to look for a new place, I’m on board with that.” Tim hugged her hard, and saw the wicked smile Lucy gave him. “You know what this means...we’ll have more time for celebrating moving in together, because we won’t be unpacking as much.” Tim grinned at her and leaned in to kiss her...their tongues collided, and they both moaned as the kiss went on and on and on. Tim backed her up into the wall and was feasting on her neck.

And that’s what Jase and Nyla walked in on. Jase cleared his throat as Nyla glared at them. “Of course...we’re doing all the work, and you two are in here practically naked.” Lucy laughed as Tim eased back away from her and looked at Nyla. “I’m nowhere near close to naked Harper...that’s later.” Nyla rolled her eyes as she set a box on the floor. Jase looked at Tim and grinned. “Where’s all this stuff going, bro?” Tim pointed to his guest room. “Just put everything in there for now...we’ll figure it out later.” Jase nodded, and carried the four boxes he was carrying into the guest room, with Nyla following with the box she had just put down. 

Angela and Wesley came in then, carrying a dozen pizzas, and a very excited baby boy, who was crazy about his Uncle Tim and Aunt Lucy. Timothy saw Lucy and reached for her and squealed. Wesley laughed as he carried his son over to Lucy. “Here...you take this guy, and I’ll go get the drinks.” Lucy took a smiling and cooing Timothy from Wesley as Tim and Jase went to help him get the drinks. Lucy looked at Angela. “Just tell us what we owe you.” Angela waved her hand. “Tim already paid for everything. There’s plenty of beer, wine, and stuff to make mojitos and margaritas.” Nyla nodded. “I’m definitely going for mojito! What about you, Lucy?” Lucy laughed as Timothy started to pull her hair. She untangled her hair from his chubby little hand. “Sounds good to me...you in Angela?” Angela shook her head. “Nah...I’ll just have some water.” Nyla and Lucy both froze...and looked intently at Angela, who couldn’t help but smile. Nyla gasped, and Lucy’s eyes went wide. “Seriously? Already? Timothy isn’t even half a year old yet!” Angela just laughed. “Yeah...it wasn’t in the gameplan, that’s for sure...but, it seems to be the way things worked out.” Angela smiled as Nyla and Lucy both pulled her into a group hug...and baby Timothy squealed, loving all the attention he thought was only for him.

Wesley, Tim, and Jase came back inside carrying the drinks...followed by John, Grace, Monica, Sgt. Grey, Grayson, Jackson, and Sterling. They all looked at Angela, Lucy, and Nyla. Wesley narrowed his eyes at Angela. “You told them already? I thought we had a whole thing planned…” Angela just laughed. “They figured it out pretty quickly...I work with some really smart ladies.” Grayson glanced between Angela and Wesley. “What did they figure out?” Wesley just grinned. “Well...the 2.0 version of my son over there will be arriving in late May, early June.” Cheers and whistles went up as everyone got excited about Baby Evers #2. Tim went up to Angela and gave her a big hug. “Didn’t waste any time, did you?” Angela laughed as she looked back at Tim. “Got to have kids while you’re young enough to enjoy them...which means you and Lucy better get busy, Bradford. You’re kind of getting up there.” Tim rolled his eyes as Timothy let out a hysterical baby laugh, making everyone else laugh. Soon the celebration was underway for Angela and Wesley and their growing family, and Tim and Lucy finally moving in together. Drinks were made, wine was poured, beers were opened, and everyone devoured the pizzas. 

As LAPD’s finest were celebrating, sixteen year old runaway Cheyenne Bradford had finally made it to Sycamore View Road...the road that her father, Officer Tim Bradford lived on. As she walked down the street and came within sight of the house, her stomach fell to her knees. Perfect...she had never met her father before, and it looked like she had picked the absolute worst moment to make that happen. There were several cars parked in his driveway and on the street; clearly he was having some kind of party. This was going to be hard enough without a freaking audience to watch it. But she had nowhere else to go...and she couldn’t go back to North Carolina, where she’d come from. If she went back there, she was dead. What the hell was she supposed to do? 

Grayson had stepped outside for a bit of air and to get away from all the lovey dovey action going on. He was extremely happy for everybody...but he was majorly down in the dumps for himself. The woman he had fallen for, fast, and hard, had bid him goodbye just that morning, and had moved across the country to accept a new job as a homicide detective with the Boston Police Department. He had told his former flame, Detective Julianna Mancinni, that they could try to make a long distance relationship work, but she had wanted a clean break. In his heart, Grayson knew she still hadn’t recovered from everything that had happened to her in Los Angeles, and that was the main reason she had left. He couldn’t blame her...he was known to do the same thing. Grayson was staring at the sky painted in orange and red as the sunset showed off it’s brilliant colors, when he glanced back down the street and noticed the scared, young teenager down the street. She looked like she was lost...and to him she looked like a runaway. She looked tired, dirty, and terrified. She also looked like she was trying to hide. 

Grayson casually began walking down the street. The girl quickly looked into the ratty bag she was carrying, trying to avoid eye contact. She looked up just as Grayson came to stand in front of her. Her eyes went wide with fear...but she didn’t run. Grayson gave her points for that. The young girl looked at him. “Ummm…are you Tim Bradford?” Grayson frowned at her...how did she know Tim? He shook his head at her. “No, I’m not. Why are you looking for him?” The young girl glanced around nervously. She shook her head trying to clear it...but suddenly her vision was fuzzy and her mind went blank. Her eyes rolled in the back of her head...and Grayson managed to catch her before she crumpled to the ground. 

“Shit!” Grayson caught the girl in his arms, as he glanced quickly around. She seemed to be completely alone...he didn’t see anyone else at all. He cradled her in his arms as he rushed back to Tim’s house with her. Lucy turned at the sudden commotion and her eyes popped out of her head as Grayson stepped inside Tim’s house with a passed out teenager. “Grayson! What in the world?” Tim and Jase turned around then and Jase rushed to help Grayson. Nyla and Angela jumped off the couch as Grayson and Jase gently deposited the unconscious girl onto Tim’s couch. Lucy rushed into the kitchen to get a glass of water. She grabbed a kitchen towel and ran it under the water from the kitchen sink. She hurried back to the couch and gave Jase the wet towl. He gently bathed the girl’s face with it...and her eyes fluttered open. She stared in horror as she was surrounded by strangers, and tried to bolt. Jase firmly held her down. “Easy! Take it easy! No one here is going to hurt you.” The young girl frantically looked around for Grayson...the only familiar face she sort of knew. Grayson saw her eyes lock on him and he came over and knelt beside her. “It’s ok honey...we’re all police officers. No one’s going to hurt you. Here...drink some water.” Grayson helped the young girl sit up and she tried to guzzle the water...she hadn’t eaten or had anything to drink in two days. Grayson gently took the glass from her. “Just drink a little bit at a time, ok?” She looked at Grayson and nodded. Grayson looked back at her. “You said you were looking for Tim Bradford, correct?” She nodded as Grayson glanced at Tim. 

Tim came to trade places with Grayson, as Lucy frowned at him. Tim looked at her, shrugging his shoulders. Jase went to get another glass of water, as everyone else was looking on. Tim looked at the girl, and tried to keep his voice soft and gentle. “I’m Tim Bradford. Can you tell me who you are...and why you’re looking for me, and how you found me? I’m sorry, but I don’t recognize you.” The young girl looked at Tim and tried and failed not to cry. Of course he wouldn’t recognize her...this was the first time he’d ever seen her, that she knew of. Her bottom lip trembled as she gathered her courage. Lucy knelt next to Tim. “It’s ok sweetie...no one here is going to hurt you. We’ll try and help you, ok? Can you tell us your name? I promise, you’re safe here.” The girl looked into Lucy’s smiling face, and for the first time since she had left North Carolina, finally felt safe. She nodded and then tearfully looked at Tim. “I’m Cheyenne...Cheyenne Bradford...and I’m your daughter.” Tim frowned at her as the room let out of a collective gasp. Cheyenne looked around at the stunned faces. She reached for her ratty bag that had fallen on the floor by the couch, and pulled a small, tin box out of it. She opened the box and pulled out her birth certificate and handed it to Tim. Tim looked at it, his eyes growing wide with every word. How the hell was it possible that he had a daughter...and why was he just now finding out about her?


	2. Cheyenne

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tim is left stunned at what Cheyenne told him. Monica uses her resources to begin checking out what little Cheyenne has revealed. Tim is hesitant to accept Cheyenne and her story...but Lucy's reaction is just the opposite, and she vos to help Cheyenne. Cheyenne reveals to Tim who her mother is, and Tim is shocked to find out it's his long lost girlfriend, Krista Cooper, who vanished during their date.

The living room fell into a stunned silence as Cheyenne looked at Tim. Tim couldn’t take his eyes off of her. He had a daughter...an almost grown one at that. And he had never known it, until about five seconds ago. 

Lucy took charge of the situation, clearing her throat. “Cheyenne...we’ve got a ton of pizza in the kitchen, and I’m sure you’re starving and tired, so, if you want, you can go take a quick shower while I fix you a plate of pizza. I’ll get some pajamas for you and leave them in the bathroom for you ok?” Cheyenne nodded gratefully at her as Lucy gently pulled her off the couch and led her into the guest bathroom. She then quickly shut the door, and Tim stalked over to her. “Boot...what the hell? We were just starting to get somewhere with her!” Lucy rolled her eyes. “Tim...can’t you tell she’s scared half to death, and half starved? She’s not up for any kind of interrogation right now! She’s exhausted. Give her time to collect herself and recharge.” Tim smirked at her. “You mean give her time to get her story straight? All we have is her word and a piece of paper saying that I’m her father. We have no idea if that’s even true or not.” Lucy rolled her eyes as she went into the kitchen to get a plate of pizza ready for Cheyenne. 

Monica came up to Tim and tried to reason with him. “Lucy’s right, Tim. You can’t interrogate this girl like you would some hardened criminal. She’s a scared teenager...I’d guess she’s a runaway. We have her name...Cheyenne Bradford. I’m going to run her and see if any hits come up on her. I’ll let you know as soon as I find out something.” With that, Monica hugged Tim goodbye, as Sgt. Grey came up to Tim. “Let me know what you need for this Bradford...I’ll help if I can.” Tim nodded his thanks, as Sgt. Grey and Monica left. Angela and Wesley decided to leave too...Timothy was getting cranky, and Angela was already tired. She went up to Tim and hugged him. “We’re going to take off too...getting past my bedtime anyway. Call me tomorrow.” Tim hugged her back and shook hands with Wesley. John and Grace were the next to bail. “If we can do anything, just let us know, ok?” Tim nodded at John, though he couldn’t begin to think what exactly needed to be done...he was still in shock. He glanced at Jase...Nyla had gone into the kitchen to help Lucy. “You guys leaving too?” Jase shook his head. “Nyla is...she’s got Lila tonight. But I’m staying right here bro. That girl is in some kind of trouble...and out of everyone in the world she could pick to help her out of it, she chose you, someone she had never met before in her life. There must be a reason for that. If she really is your family, that makes her my family too, and I’m going to help her in whatever way I can.” Tim nodded, grateful for Jase. Grayson started to say his goodbyes but Jase shook his head. “Don’t even think about it. That girl latched onto you first. She trusts you...out of all of us, you’re the one that needs to stay the most right now.” Grayson sighed and nodded. “Ok. Not sure what I could do to help her, but, I’ll try.” 

Just then Cheyenne emerged from the guest bathroom in a pair of Lucy’s pajamas. They almost fit her perfectly. Everyone turned and smiled at her...except for Tim. He didn’t know what exactly he was feeling at the moment. Cheyenne looked at the curious faces that were staring at her. “Umm...where should I put my things?” Tim went up to her. “I’ll take your clothes...I’ll throw them in the washer. Then we need to talk, ok?” Cheyenne nodded, as she went to sit on the couch. Tim went into his small laundry room, and quickly went through the pockets in the clothing Cheyenne had been wearing, looking for any kind of clue...he found a locket in the pocket of her shirt and pulled it out. He tossed Cheyenne’s dirty clothes into the washer, along with some detergent and started it up. Then he went back into the living room, where Cheyenne was wolfing down the pizza Lucy had made for her. Nyla had just left to get her daughter for the night. Tim frowned at her as he sat next to her. “Cheyenne...when was the last time you ate?” She looked up at him as she choked down the pizza. “Like two days ago.” Tim frowned deeply at her. “What? Why? What happened to you?” Cheyenne looked away from him and focused on eating her pizza. Tim handed her the locket he had found. “This fell out of your clothes when I was putting them in the washer. I thought it might be important.” Cheyenne dropped the pizza on her plate and took the locket from Tim. Tears brimmed in her eyes. “Yes, it is. Thank you.” Tim started to ask her more questions, but got a warning look from Lucy. He sighed...she was right. Cheyenne was in no condition to be interrogated right now. Cheyenne finished her pizza, and the water Lucy had given her. She hesitantly looked up at Tim...who smiled at her. “Cheyenne...it’s ok. You’re safe here. As you can imagine, I have lots of questions.” Cheyenne nodded. “I know...let’s get this over with.”

Tim frowned at her sullen expression...but he reminded himself that Cheyenne was after all, sixteen. This was normal teenage behavior. And she was also tired, and obviously incredibly hungry, so, maybe she’d feel better soon since she’d just wolfed down half a pizza by herself. Tim sighed. “Ok...let’s start with something easy. Where’s home?” Cheyenne looked at him...and, Tim noted with some pride, she wasn’t shying away or timid. She looked like she was gearing up for battle. “North Carolina.” Tim raised his eyebrows. “Well, that’s quite a ways from here. How did you get to California?” Cheyenne sighed. “Hitchhiked part of the way, took a bus the rest of the way.” Tim frowned at her. “You hitchhiked? Do you have any clue how dangerous that is? You could have been hurt...or worse!” Cheyenne rolled her eyes, the same time as Lucy did. If Tim started in with the lecturing, Cheyenne would shut down in the blink of an eye. Lucy came to stand next to him and put her hand on his shoulder and squeezed it...signaling him to be quiet. Before Tim could speak, Lucy took over the questioning. “Cheyenne...do you have any family? Where’s your mom? Does she know you’re here?” Cheyenne’s expression changed...to one of absolute, total fear. Lucy recognized the fear in Cheyenne’s eyes...she’d known that same type of fear. Cheyenne looked at Lucy pleadingly. “Can I go lie down now? I’m really tired.” Lucy nodded and took her to Tim’s guest room,,, which, Lucy noted, was now clear of all the boxes that had been put there earlier. Apparently Jase had Grayson had been busy. 

Cheyenne sat down on the bed, and began crying. Lucy closed the door, and sat down on the bed with her. “Cheyenne...did something happen to your mom? What I said before, it’s still true. None of us are going to hurt you, and if there’s a way we can help you, we will. But we have to know some more details about you and your situation before we know how to help you.” Cheyenne looked at Lucy tearfully. “That’s why I came here...I thought my dad could help me. But he clearly doesn’t want me here. If I could just take a nap, I’ll leave afterwards, I promise.” Lucy firmly shook her head and pulled Cheyenne into a hard hug. “No...we don’t want you to leave. You can stay here as long as you like. You just rest now, ok? We’ll help you sort all of this out in the morning, ok?” Lucy got up to leave...but stopped at the door when she saw Cheyenne’s expression. “You want me to leave a light on?” Cheyenne nodded, and Lucy smiled at her. “Ok. You just rest now.” Lucy opened the door, and walked out of the room, softly closing the door behind her.

She went up to Tim, who stood up and immediately began interrogating Lucy. “Did you get anything more out of her? Did you get any more details? Did she tell you anything?” Lucy rolled her eyes. “Yeah, she told me something. She told me she’ll leave after she takes a nap because clearly her father doesn’t want her here. She came to you for help, Tim. And because of how you’re treating her, she’s ready to bolt.” Tim closed his eyes, huffing in frustration. He grabbed Lucy’s hand and tugged her into the kitchen, and tried to keep his voice down...he was successful...mostly. “How the hell am I supposed to treat her, Boot? Some teenager that I’ve never laid eyes on before in my life shows up on my doorstep and says hi, oh by the way, I’m your long lost daughter. Clearly she’s been through something...but what? She could be a criminal for all we know, and you’re treating her like she’s some stray puppy.” Lucy looked down at the floor, before looking back up at Tim. “You’re right...she has been through something. And whatever it is, it’s similar to what I went through. She looked at me with real fear in her eyes Tim...I know that kind of fear. Whatever she’s gone through, or is going through, has absolutely terrified her. We have to help her.” Tim went to the counter, and put his hands on it. He closed his eyes, and took a deep breath. Lucy looked at him and went to him. She slowly turned him around to face her. “What is it, Tim?” Tim looked at her. “If that’s really my kid in there...I’ve missed out on most of her life. I wasn’t there for her birthdays, or Christmas mornings...I never taught her how to swim or ride a bike. I never got to do any of that stuff with her...and I should have been there, for all of it!” Lucy caressed his cheek with her palm. “You can’t go back and change any of that Tim. But she clearly needs you, right now. You can be there for her, right now, and help her with whatever is going on. That seems like a great place to start being her dad, to me anyway.” Tim leaned his face into Lucy’s palm and closed his eyes. He turned his face, and kissed her palm before pulling her into a hard hug. He sighed...as usual, Lucy was right. He let go of her and kissed her forehead. “I’ll go talk to her.”

Cheyenne had opened the locket and was looking at the picture inside it. It was a picture of her and her mother. Cheyenne was just a toddler, and her mother was holding her, and they were both grinning at the camera. “I miss you so much mama. I’d do anything to have you back.” She felt the tears fall, as she heard a soft knock on the door. She quickly wiped the tears away. “Come in.” Tim opened the door and peeked his head inside. “Can I come in?” Cheyenne nodded, and hopped off the bed. “I’ll be out of your hair soon. I’m not tired enough for a nap, so, I’ll get dressed. If you tell me where the bus station is, I’ll go.” Tim sighed, as he walked in and sat down on the bed, and gently pulled Cheyenne to sit on the bed beside him. “I’m sorry, Cheyenne. I don’t want you to go...I’m sorry if it seemed like I did. It was just a big shock finding out about you.” Cheyenne looked at him and nodded. Tim glanced down at the open locket she held in her hand. “Is that a picture of you and your mom?” Cheyenne nodded and handed it to him. “Yeah...it was taken on Easter Sunday. I was two years old.” Tim took the locket and stared at the picture and gasped. Cheyenne looked at him. “That’s my mom...her name was..” Tim looked at Cheyenne. “Krista. Your mom’s name was Krista. I know.” Tim stared in shock at the picture of his former flame, Krista Cooper. They had gone through basic training together, and their first duty station had been together, at Ft. Bragg, NC. Tim and Krista had gone out to dinner one night; before leaving the small restaurant they were having dinner at, Tim had needed to use the bathroom. When he’d come back to their table, Krista was gone...and he had never seen her again. He had tried for weeks to find her after she had mysteriously disappeared that night. But Krista had vanished, and he’d never found a trace of her...until now.


	3. First Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tim, Jase, and Grayson come up with a plan to help Cheyenne. Monica uses some of her FBI resources and finds out some information on Cheyenne's past...including the fact that Cheyenne's mother is officially listed as a missing person.

Tim came out of the bedroom...Cheyenne had fallen asleep. Tim didn’t know what to think anymore. He seemed to have fathered a child, with the girl he had thought was the one for him. And that girl had wound up disappearing one night after he’d taken out to dinner and had shattered his heart. Granted, he had been young and stupid at the time, in his early 20’s and not even close to having his shit together then. But damnit, if Krista had only told him about the baby he’d have taken care of both of them, he’d have done the right thing, because that’s who he was. Why the hell had she run...and more importantly, why the hell had she kept their daughter hidden from him all these years? 

Jase and Grayson looked at Tim with their eyebrows raised. He just shook his head. “Lucy went to bed already?” Jase nodded. “Yeah...and Jackson and Sterling just took off.” Tim nodded. Jase looked at him as Grayson went into the kitchen to get beers for them. “She tell you anything?” Tim nodded, as Grayson came back into the living room, and handed him a beer. “I know who her mother is...and you aren’t going to freaking believe it.” Jase snapped his fingers. “It’s Krista, isn’t it?” Tim rolled his eyes. “Of course you figured it out.” Jase grinned as he sipped his beer. Tim took two long pulls from his beer and sighed. Grayson looked at them. “Who is Krista? And does she know Cheyenne is here?” Tim sighed as he told his story. “Krista was my first real love. We went through basic training together. And our first duty station was together...we got stationed at Ft. Bragg, in North Carolina. We were really serious...I thought I was going to marry her.” Grayson looked at Tim as Tim took another pull from his beer. He swallowed and memories came flooding back to him...memories that always broke his heart. “The night I was going to propose to her, I had taken her out to dinner, at a small restaurant, off base. I was nervous and had to use the bathroom. I came back out, to our table, and she was gone. I went back to our tiny apartment, but she never came back home. I searched everywhere for her, for three days. I knew something horrible must have happened, because she wasn’t showing up for work either. I finally went to the base MP’s, and tried to file a missing person’s report. And that’s when I found out she was granted a medical separation from the Army. I never saw her again, and I was never able to find her.” 

Grayson softly whistled. “Damn, Bradford, that’s rough. And now, sixteen years later, Cheyenne shows up, and…what? Did she ask for money or anything?” Tim narrowed his eyes as he drank his beer, trying to work through everything. His mind was racing. “No...she didn’t ask me for anything. I asked here where Krista was, and if Krista was ok, and that’s when she basically kicked me out of the room...Cheyenne said she was really tired and needed to sleep.” Tim glanced at Jase. “What are you thinking...you’re awfully quiet.” Jase sighed as he sipped his beer. “Well, for one thing, Cheyenne doesn’t look like you...at all. So, she must look like her mother. I don’t remember Krista very well, I only met her a couple of times, I just remember how crazy you were about her.” Jase continued to sip his beer as Tim continued to look at him. “What is it? You have that look.” Jase glanced at the closed bedroom door to the guest room and then back at Tim. “Krista took off, without a word to you, and basically just disappeared.” Tim rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I remember, thanks. I don’t know why she did that, I don’t know why she was trying to keep me from my own daughter.” Jase shook his head at him. “Maybe she wasn’t trying to keep you away from Cheyenne...maybe she was trying to keep someone else away from Cheyenne and her. Maybe she wasn’t hiding from you, Tim. Maybe she was hiding from someone else...someone who could hurt you, Krista, and Cheyenne.” Tim shrugged his shoulders...it was a possibility he supposed. “I guess...but who?” Jase looked at him. “Has to be someone connected to the Army...or more specifically, someone connected to Fort Bragg, at the time you and Krista were stationed there.” Tim nodded. Just then, his cell phone rang. He fished it out of his pocket. “It’s Rabbit...maybe she has news.” 

Tim answered the call, and his face fell with every word. The news Monica had given him was nothing at all that he was hoping for. After about a ten minute conversation, Tim hung up the phone, and closed his eyes. His heart hurt. The woman he had once loved with everything he had, who he had intended on making his for eternity was now officially listed as a missing person. There was an open investigation into her disappearance, which had occurred almost two months ago, but the police had made very little progress, and the impression Monica had gotten was Krista’s case wasn’t high priority...because apparently she’d been a waitress, and when money had been tight, a prostitute as well. Cheyenne was listed as a missing person too, but also classified as a runaway, which also made her a zero on the priority list for missing persons. Tim opened his eyes and looked at Jase and Grayson. He filled them in on what was going on. Grayson swore. “That poor kid...no wonder she looks and acts terrified. I’d bet my next paycheck she knows a lot more about her mom’s disappearance than she’s told anyone.” Tim nodded. Monica had also gotten some background information, and apparently, Cheyenne had had a pretty decent life. Her mother had done whatever she’d had to do to keep a roof over their heads and food on their table...but by all accounts, Cheyenne had been well cared for and deeply loved by her mother. And, in a surprising twist to Tim...Cheyenne was brilliant, and even though she was only sixteen, she had already graduated high school. But shortly after her graduation, her mother had disappeared, and Cheyenne had taken off. Jase looked at him. “So what happens now?” Tim sighed. “Well, I can tell you what’s not happening. I’m not letting anyone put Cheyenne in foster care. She’s been through enough. Since it’s my name on her birth certificate, Monica’s going to help me get emergency guardianship.” Tim knew Lucy would be ok with it, which was one of the deciding factors. Jase looked at him. “And?” Tim finished his beer. “And I’m taking Cheyenne with me, and we’re going back to North Carolina. The cops there aren’t doing jack shit to find Krista.” Jase nodded, but Grayson shook his head, and Tim frowned at him. “Don’t take her with you, Bradford.” Tim cocked his head to the side. “Why not?” Grayson lowered his voice. “Because clearly she’s running...either from something or someone. If you take her back to North Carolina, you might be taking her right back to whatever made her run all the way out here in the first place.” Tim hadn’t thought about that. “I have to find Krista...I have to find her, at least for Cheyenne.” Grayson nodded, and Jase came up with a solution. “Ok, so, Grayson stays here with Lucy and Cheyenne, and you and I go out to North Carolina and see what we can find.” Tim looked at Grayson, who nodded. “I can do that.” Jase smiled at him, and then looked at Tim. “Now all you have to do is tell your fiancee that you’re going out to North Carolina for who knows how long to find the girl you originally were going to marry, who broke your heart. Good luck with that one.” Grayson sighed. “Yeah...I think I’ll go clean up the kitchen.” Jase smirked at him. “Good idea, I’ll help you.” 

Tim rolled his eyes as he watched them retreat into the kitchen. Yeah, he’d have to talk to Lucy alright. He sighed in resignation; this was so not how he thought they’d be spending their first night living together. He quietly entered his bedroom, and shut the door. Lucy was still awake...she was reading a book. He went into the bathroom and shut the door. A few minutes later he emerged, and Lucy looked at him. She rolled her eyes as she pulled off her reading glasses, and closed her book and set them both on the nightstand. “Clearly you have something to tell me, and just as clearly, I’m not going to like it.” Tim frowned at her...sometimes it irked him that she could read him so easily. He sighed as he climbed into bed. “Yeah...I have some things to tell you. I don’t know if you’ll like them or not. But, hear me out before you say anything, please?” Lucy nodded, and snuggled into his chest as he wrapped his arm around her. It was always easier for him to tell her things when she was wrapped around him...she was almost like his security blanket. He kissed the top of her head and then told her...everything.

Lucy didn’t say anything as Tim finished up his story. His heart began to anxiously race. “Boot?” He looked down at her as Lucy looked up at him. “I’m so sorry Tim. That’s a hell of a thing to go through.” He continued to look at her, then he kissed her forehead and closed his eyes. “I have to find her, Luce...I have to, for Cheyenne’s sake. But, I need you to hear me on this, ok? I love you. I’m going to marry you. I want to find Krista to make sure she’s safe, and I need to find her for Cheyenne’s sake. But Krista and I were over a long, long time ago.” Lucy nodded. “I know that, Tim. And I understand why you need to find her. I just wish I could go with you.” Tim kissed her forehead again. “Me too...but I need someone here I trust that will look after Cheyenne. And then after I find Krista, we’ll figure out our next steps with Cheyenne.” He sighed. “I’m sorry, Boot. This isn’t how I thought we’d be spending our first night together living in the same house.” Lucy smiled as she sat up quickly and turned off the light on the nightstand. She quickly stripped and then straddled Tim, who hissed sharply. Lucy’s voice was so whisper soft, he barely heard her. “I bet this is how you thought we’d spend it.” She leaned forward and kissed him hotly, tangling her tongue with his. She kept pressing soft, open mouthed kisses on his mouth, and they became voracious for each other. Tim quickly shed his clothes, as his hips rolled into hers. Lucy’s soft laughter tingled over his skin. He grasped her hips, and teased her. She moaned some more and threw her head back. Tim bent forward and began tasting and teasing her breasts. He reached between her legs and began teasing her with his fingers, but she was already wet and ready for him. He brought his hands back to her hips and slowly entered her and Lucy sighed. She began to slowly ride him, making Tim groan. She rode him faster, and harder, and they came together in a frenzy. Lucy fell forward, and rested her sweaty forehead on his shoulder. Tim whispered into her ear. “That’s exactly how I was hoping we’d spend tonight...and so’s this.” With that, he flipped her over, and rolled her underneath him, and kissed her deeply, and soon he was inside her again, making her crazy for him all over again.


	4. Secrets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tim tells Cheyenne his plan of going to North Carolina to look for her mother and it doesn't go well. More of Cheyenne's secrets come to light...especially after she confides in Grayson what really happened to her that caused her to go on the run. Grayson convinces her to tell the others the truth about what happened.

Tim and Lucy were in the kitchen making breakfast. Jase had gone for a run, and Grayson was on his way over. Cheyenne came out of the bedroom, and came into the kitchen. Tim and Lucy turned and looked at her, and both of them smiled at her. Lucy took her a glass of orange juice. “You hungry? Breakfast will be ready soon.” Cheyenne nodded, and took the juice, guzzling all of it, and putting the glass on the counter. She looked at Lucy and then at Tim, before looking back at Lucy. “So...are you two like, married, or something?” Lucy grinned at her. “Not yet, but we will be, fairly soon.” Cheyenne simply nodded at her. She had always wondered why Tim and her mother had never married...her mother had always been evasive about it. 

Tim brought the plates of toast, bacon, and eggs to the table. Cheyenne noticed two extra plates on the counter. “Are more people coming?” Lucy nodded. “Jase, that’s Tim’s cousin, so I guess that makes him your cousin too, will be back soon, and Grayson, my partner, is coming over.” Cheyenne visibly relaxed...Grayson was the one she had first encountered and he just seemed to put her at east. Cheyenne glanced at Tim, as they all sat down at the table. “Umm...I don’t know what to call you.” Tim looked at her and smiled. “Why don’t we start with Tim, and let you get comfortable with that, and we’ll go from there.” Cheyenne nodded, and hungrily dug into her food. Then she noticed Tim staring at her and she rolled her eyes. “Just ask me. You’re a cop, and you’re my dad, and you probably have questions. Don’t be such a pansyass, just ask me.” Lucy hid her grin behind her cup of tea as Tim barked out a laugh...boy, she could see the family resemblance already. Tim cleared his throat. “Ok..well, the first thing I’m curious about is...did your mom ever mentioned me at all to you? Do you know anything about me at all?” Cheyenne smiled at him sadly. “Yeah...she told me your name and that you were a really good guy, and a really brave soldier, but you had to go away. She never told me why you went away. But she also told me that if I was ever in trouble and she couldn’t help me, that I should find you, that you would help me. She also said you were the best thing that ever happened to her.” Cheyenne glanced nervously at Lucy realizing what she’d just said. Lucy smiled at her. “Cheyenne, it’s ok. Don’t worry about it.” Tim bumped Lucy’s leg under the table with his, and she bumped his leg back. Tim got serious then. “Cheyenne...one of the people that was here last night, her name is Monica. She’s an old friend of mine from college. She works for the FBI. She looked into some things for me and...I know…” he glanced at Lucy just then. “Well, actually, we know, about your mother’s disappearance. I promise you, we will do everything we can to help find her.” Cheyenne choked down the bite of food she had just taken. “That’s what the police back home said. They haven’t done shit to find her.” Tim saw Cheyenne fighting back the tears and got up. He came around the table and crouched down in front of her as Lucy reached for her hand. Tim rested his hand on the back of Cheyenne’s chair. “I promise you, we will do everything we can to find her Cheyenne. You have my word on that.” Cheyenne looked at him as Lucy squeezed Cheyenne’s hand. “You can trust us Chey...we will do whatever we can to help you. Jase and Tim are leaving for North Carolina today to go look for your mom. You’re going to stay here with me, and Grayson will be here with us.” Cheyenne teared up then. “My mama used to call me that when I was little.” Cheyenne started to cry then, and Lucy pulled her into her arms. She rubbed Cheyenne’s back up and down. “We’re going to help you sweetie...we’re going to use everything we’ve got to find your mom, ok?” Cheyenne just nodded, and felt Tim awkwardly pat her back. Cheyenne closed her eyes, so thankful that her mama had been right. Her dad was a good man, apparently, and he was going to help. And so was his fiancee, Lucy. She hadn’t made a mistake coming out here after all.

Tim went back to sit at the table as Lucy and Cheyenne went back to eating their food. Tim looked at Cheyenne. “Chey...can I call you that?” Cheyenne smiled at him and nodded. Tim smiled back at her. “Ok then...Chey. Can you tell me anything at all about your mom’s disappearance?” Cheyenne frowned at him. “Like what?” Tim took a bite of eggs before answering her. “Well...was anything weird happening at the time she disappeared? Any strange phone calls, any strange people hanging around, something that came in the mail maybe that normally wouldn’t? Anything at all like that? And how was your mom acting? Was she happy, and ok, or was she sad and depressed? Was she scared about something?” The fear that Lucy had seen before was now back in Cheyenne’s eyes, and this time, Tim saw it too. She definitely knew something...and Tim had to find out what. But before he could push her, Grayson and Jase walked in. Jase shut the door as Grayson eyed the food. “What...you guys couldn’t wait for us?” Cheyenne rolled her eyes. “You snooze, you lose.” Jase laughed as he pointed at Tim. “She’s definitely yours, bro.” Tim smiled at Jase, as Grayson laughed and shook his head. Lucy pointed to the kitchen. “Your plates are in there waiting for you two.” Grayson and Jase made their way to the kitchen, and grabbed their plates, as well as two mugs of coffee. Then they joined Lucy, Tim, and Cheyenne at the table. Lucy glanced around at the now crowded table as Grayson winked at Cheyenne as he sat down. “You hanging in there, kid?” Cheyenne looked at Grayson and sent him a soft smile. “Yeah..I’m ok.” Grayson nodded. “Good...by the way, don’t take any of your dad’s shit.” Jase choked on his coffee before he busted out laughing. Lucy and Grayson were also laughing, and Cheyenne was just smiling at Tim. Tim shook his head and rolled his eyes. Cheyenne laughed at him. “I guess I get my famous eyeroll from you as well.” She rolled her eyes just then, and it was a perfect Bradford eyeroll.

Cheyenne felt the smile fall away from her face as she thought back to Tim’s questions. She cleared her throat. “So...back to what you were asking me.” Tim nodded, and waited for her to continue. “I didn’t notice anything strange in the mail or anyone weird hanging around. But mama got all weirded out by a phone call the last day I saw her. Said she had to go meet an old friend for drinks...and that was the last time I saw her, she never came home.” Everyone frowned at that. Tim was the first to speak. “What did the police do?” Cheyenne put her fork down. “Nothing. They said they couldn’t do much without a location to search, and I don’t know where she was going to meet that person for drinks. Look...there’s something you should know about mama. She never knew that I found out about her other job. She worked waitressing jobs most of my life...but sometimes money was tight, like really tight. Sometimes she...she…” Tim held his hand up. “I know, It was in the information my friend found out.” Cheyenne just nodded. “Well, because she did that, the cops that were investigating her case didn’t really do much. They figured on one of the nights she was working, one of the guys got carried away and killed her. One of them actually told me I was better off without having a hooker for a mother.” Lucy gasped at that as Tim slammed down his coffee mug, making Cheyenne jump. Grayson looked at her. “That’s rough kid...I’m sorry. And I’m sorry the cops who caught your mother’s case are such assholes. We’re not all like that.” Cheyenne looked worriedly at Tim. “I don’t think you should go to North Carolina.” She looked at Tim and Jase, who both frowned at her. Jase sipped his coffee. “I’m a Navy SEAL honey, we’ll be fine.” Cheyenne shook her head. “That doesn’t matter. She was hiding something from me, I know she was. I just don’t know what. But whoever made her disappear could do the same thing to you guys. Please, please don’t go!” Cheyenne jumped up from the table and ran into the guest room and shut the door.

To everyone’s surprise, Grayson was the one who stood up first. “I’ll go talk to her.” Lucy grabbed his hand. “Grayson...you don’t have to do that. You barely know her, let Tim or I go.” Grayson shook his head. “I know I barely know her...we all barely know her...but you forget Lucy, I grew up exactly like she did. All I had was my mom, and money was tight for us too...really tight. I know what it’s like to lose the only family you have and be completely alone in this world.” Lucy glanced at Tim and Jase. Tim took her hand. “He’s got a point, Boot.” Lucy nodded...she trusted her partner. She just hoped Cheyenne would too.

Grayson knocked on the door. “Go away, please.” He sighed and opened the door anyway. He walked into the guest room, and closed the door. He went to sit in a small chair that was in the corner of the room. Cheyenne frowned at him. “You suddenly don’t understand english?” Grayson just smirked at her. “Look, kid…” Cheyenne rolled her eyes. “That’s not my name.” Grayson sighed. “Ok...sorry. Cheyenne, I know this royally sucks…” She glared at him. “How the fuck could you know that? You haven’t lived my life!” Grayson held onto his patience. “Yeah, I have.” Cheyenne looked at him then...and fell quiet as she waited for Grayson to explain. He sighed and got up from the chair and sat next to her on the bed. “I’ve lived your life Cheyenne. I was raised by a single mom, and we were dirt poor a lot of the time. The sight of bologna in the grocery store makes me want to puke, because bologna sandwiches for breakfast, lunch, and dinner happened more often than not in my house. If we had extra money, we got to have bologna and cheese sandwiches. It wasn’t until I was in high school that my mom finally got a decent job that could support us.” Cheyenne looked at him then...as if seeing him for the first time. Grayson looked down at his hands. “I don’t know what it’s like having your only family disappear into thin air, and I’m sorry that happened to you, Cheyenne. And I promise you, we will do everything we can to fix that. But I do know what it’s like to lose the only family you have.” Grayson fought the tears back down. Not a day went by that he didn’t think of his mom...he still missed her so much. Cheyenne gasped. “Your mom...she’s gone?” Grayson sighed and nodded. “Yeah. She got sick and she died. I’ve been on my own ever since. I don’t have a dad. He bailed when my mom told him she was pregnant with me. Never met him.” Cheyenne looked at him sympathetically then. “How old were you when your mom died?” He looked at her. “Not much older than you are now. It sucks, losing the only family you have, so soon in life. I know it does. But Cheyenne, you’re not alone in this. We’ve all got your back. I know you don’t know your dad very well, but he’s the best damn cop I’ve ever worked with.” Grayson glanced around then, and whispered. “But don’t tell Lucy I said that, since she’s my partner. She’s a great cop...and she’ll be as good as your dad, probably sooner rather than later. But I promise you, Tim can handle himself. And he’s got his badass Navy SEAL cousin going with him. They’ll be fine. And while they’re gone, I’ll be here with you and Lucy. No one is going to get to you, or your dad. We’re all going to make sure of that.” Cheyenne nodded, and shuddered. Grayson saw the fear come into her eyes. “Cheyenne...what is it? You can tell me.” She looked at the closed door and then back at Grayson. “I didn’t tell Tim...because I just found him, and I don’t want to lose him.” Grayson nodded. “Ok...you didn’t tell him what?” Cheyenne closed her eyes, gathering herself. She opened them again and looked at Grayson. “I know who the person is.” Grayson frowned at her. “Who are you talking about?” Cheyenne shuddered again. “I know the name of the person my mom was going to meet for drinks that night. I gave his name to the cops. I overheard her conversation with him on the phone.” Grayson nodded in approval. “Good...that’s good.” Cheyenne was shaking her head now. “No, it’s not good. I don’t know how he found out where we live, but the night after he met my mama, he showed up at our house. I was asleep, and my dog started growling. I heard footsteps in the house...I knew it wasn’t mama because Honey, that’s my dog, she wouldn’t growl at mama. I opened my bedroom door just enough to look out and saw him. I recognized him from a picture my mama had...it was a picture of her Army unit. I knew something was horribly wrong if he was in my house, even after mama had never come home. So, I shut my bedroom door and locked it, and jumped out my bedroom window. That’s why I left. I know who he is, and he knows that I know. That’s why Tim and Jase can’t go back to North Carolina...I think that guy killed my mama, and he’ll kill them too.” Grayson sighed. “How do you know he killed her?” Cheyenne willed back the tears. “Mama never came home that night she went to meet him. I went to the cops the next morning when I realized she had never made it home. Mama always came home...she never stayed out all night, never, unless she had to work a double shift at the diner...and when she did I was always with her. She never would have left me alone all night long. That’s how I know he killed her.” 

Cheyenne started to sob then, and Grayson pulled her into his arms. She was shaking like a leaf. “No one is going to kill you. I won’t let that happen, and neither will Lucy, or Tim, or Jase. And no one is going to get to Tim or Jase either. You’re going to be ok, you hear me? I promise you Cheyenne, we’re going to get the bottom of this, and we’re going to find this guy. But you need to tell us who you think it is. That will definitely give Tim and Jase a better chance of finding this guy. You need to tell them.” Cheyenne looked away, uneasily, before looking back at Grayson. Grayson sighed. “Do you know why he would want to hurt your mom?” Cheyenne shook her head. “No...but I think it has something to do with why she left the Army. She always talked about how much she missed it. But she would never get together with any of her friends from the Army. The way we lived…” She hesitated, and Grayson squeezed her, trying to reassure her. “What?” Cheyenne sighed into his chest. “It was like we were hiding. Always hiding...we never went out in public except at night, and that was usually only for groceries. The only other times we went out was when mama had to work at the diner and I’d go with her...she rarely left me with any babysitters. Mama home schooled me, I was never allowed to go to school, I never had any friends, and honestly, mama didn’t either except a couple of women she waitressed with. I used to ask her why daddy couldn’t come help us...she’d always say she had to protect him, but I never understood what she meant by that.” 

Grayson sighed as Cheyenne sat up, wiping away her tears. Clearly there was a lot missing from the information that Monica had been able to find out. “Cheyenne, Tim needs to know all of this. He’s not going to be mad at you or your mom, but the more information he has, the more it will help him when he and Jase go to North Carolina. It’s going to be ok, I promise.” Cheyenne looked at Grayson nervously, before she nodded her head. “Ok...I’ll tell him. But will you stay, please?” Grayson nodded. “I told you, Lucy and I will be hanging out with you until we get this sorted out. No one’s going to get to you. You’ve never seen Lucy fight have you? My partner’s got serious kickass skills...and mine aren’t bad either.” Cheyenne laughed as Grayson got off the bed and went to the door. He looked back at her, and smirked. “C’mon kid...let’s do this.” Cheyenne rolled her eyes as she sailed past him. “I told you, that’s not my name.” He grinned at her back. He knew it wasn’t her name...but calling her that had put the fire back in her eyes.


	5. Father And Daughter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More secrets of Cheyenne's past come to light. Tim is in such a rush to save Cheyenne and find her mother, he doesn't see at first how much Cheyenne simply needs to be with him. When he finally does, he decides to delay his trip to North Carolina for a day, and spend the day with Cheyenne, just the two of them. It makes Tim realize how much he missed out on with her, and how much he wants to be a father.

It was closing in on lunchtime. After hearing Cheyenne’s story, Tim and Jase had immediately sprang into action. Jase had gone back to Nyla’s to pack and tell her goodbye...he wasn’t sure how long he and Tim would be gone. Tim was in his bedroom, packing clothes. He was hurrying around between his bedroom and bathroom, making plans. Grayson had gone back to his house to get his dog and some clothes and tolietries. Lucy stood in the kitchen, watching Cheyenne on the deck, from the kitchen window. She looked scared, and helpless, and lost. Lucy sighed and went into the bedroom. She sat down on the bed, and grabbed Tim’s hand to get his attention as he was shoving things into his suitcase. “Tim...I think you need to slow down a bit.” Tim rolled his eyes. “You heard what Cheyenne told us. Someone is after her, Boot...the same someone who is probably responsible for Krista’s disappearance. I need to get to North Carolina, today, and take care of this.” Lucy stood up and firmly shook her head. “No...you don’t. There’s nothing that you could do today anyway. Tim...can’t you see how much Cheyenne needs you? She came all this way to find YOU...not me, not Grayson, not Jase...YOU. She’s been here less than 24 hours and you’re already leaving her.” Tim stopped what he was doing and stared at Lucy. “I’m doing this for her, Boot. You know that.” Lucy closed her eyes, struggling to hold onto her patience...sometimes it took Tim a minute to grasp the emotional stuff. “I know you are, babe, but stop and take a breath. Cheyenne needs time with you...just you. And you need time with her. So before you go running off to save the world again, give yourselves the time with each other that you’ve both been denied for the last sixteen years. You never know what could happen out there Tim...don’t deny yourself, or her, this chance. Please. Spend today with her...you can go to North Carolina tomorrow.” Lucy looked at Tim pleadingly, and Tim sighed deeply...Lucy had a point. Anything could happen out in North Carolina, or on the way out there, or on the way home. This might be his only chance to get to know his daughter. He pulled out his cell phone and called Jase, and told him about the change of plan. After he disconnected the call with Jase, he contacted the airline, and changed his and Jase’s tickets. Once all that was done, he tossed his phone down on the bed, and pulled Lucy into his arms. He cradled her face in his hands and kissed her deeply. “I love you, Boot. How do you always know the right thing to do?” She smiled at him. “It’s a gift. Now, go.” Tim kissed her again before going to find Cheyenne.

Twenty minutes later, Tim and Cheyenne were pulling out of his driveway. Tim looked at her. “So...where do you want to go?” Cheyenne smiled at him. “Umm...could we go to the beach? I’ve never seen the ocean before.” Tim gaped at her. “Are you serious?” Cheyenne sadly nodded. “Chey...forgive me for asking this, but how is that possible? Didn’t you grow up in North Carolina? North Carolina has a coastline.” Cheyenne looked out the window, embarrassed. “We were poor, Tim. We barely had enough money to eat every week...going to the beach was never an option. And mama...she was scared to take me to places like that.” Tim shook his head. “I’m sorry Cheyenne. Yes, we’re absolutely going to the beach.” Cheyenne smiled excitedly as Tim headed for his favorite spot.

About 45 minutes later, Tim and Cheyenne were walking along Sunset Beach. She couldn’t stop looking at the gorgeous blue water of the Pacific. “Oh… this is so beautiful!” She spun around in the sand with her arms out, her head thrown back, and her eyes closed, as the breeze from the water blew her blonde hair away from her shoulders and face. Tim smiled at the gift he’d been given. He may have missed out on Cheyenne’s first birthday, and when she took her first step, and when she said her first word, but he was there for her first time at the beach. It was a milestone for Cheyenne, and Tim was more thankful than he could ever admit that he’d been a part of it. They had walked for miles, when Cheyenne finally stopped. Tim looked at her. “You want to sit down?” Cheyenne frowned at him. “You mean we can just sit on the sand?” Tim laughed. “Yeah, that’s how it’s done.” Cheyenne happily plopped down on the sand as the wind picked up, and Tim glanced at her as she watched the water. She had his hair, but there was a lot of her mother in her too. She had Krista’s smile, and her laugh, and her gorgeous hazel eyes, and her athletic build, though she was tall like Tim. Honestly, other than her hair color, Tim didn’t think she looked like him at all. The first doubts that she was actually his began to creep into his mind...but he put them aside for now. He was just glad he was finally getting to know her. Cheyenne glanced at Tim. “Will you tell me some stories about mama?” Tim smiled and nodded. “Sure. What do you want to know?” Cheyenne sighed. “How did you two meet?” Tim smiled as he looked out at the water and thought of his first love. “We went through basic training together in the Army. I knew of her, but didn’t really know her then. The first time we officially met was in a bar, just outside the base.” Tim laughed at the memory. “I lost a bet to her.” Cheyenne laughed with him. “What was the bet?” Tim rolled his eyes. “Well, we had just finished basic training, and we all thought we were hot shit. She and I both had had a little too much to drink that night. Anyway, we got the bright idea to see who could do the most push ups until one of us puked.” Cheyenne laughed harder. “That was stupid.” Tim elbowed her. “Yeah, it totally was. Anyway...what I didn’t know at the time, your mother had bribed the bartender, and he had made my drinks twice as strong as hers. So, as it turns out, I was much drunker than she was. I got to nine push ups before I puked. Your mother got to thirty...and never puked.” Tim shook his head and smiled at the memory. He shrugged his shoulders. “Anyway, after that, we became inseparable.” Cheyenne looked back out over the water. “Why didn’t you two ever get married?” Tim sighed...he knew this was coming. He looked at Cheyenne. “I was going to ask her...the night she disappeared from my life. I had taken her out on a date...had the ring in my pocket and everything. I got really nervous and went to the bathroom...I thought I was going to puke. I was in the bathroom maybe five minutes. Anyway, I came back out to our table and she was gone. We were living together at that point, and she never came home. I searched everywhere for her, for three days. I finally decided to file a missing person’s report and that’s when I learned from the base that she had asked for and been granted a medical separation from the Army. She was totally and completely gone. I tried to find her, but I couldn’t. I never saw her again. She just left everything behind...including me.” Tim frowned and looked down at the sand. “I never knew about you either Cheyenne. If I had known I would have helped.” Cheyenne grasped his hand. “I know. Mama told me we had to protect you and that the only way to do that was not to contact you. But we always knew where you were. She always made sure I knew where you were, in case something happened to her.” Tim looked at Cheyenne in surprise. “She did? She kept track of me?” Cheyenne sadly nodded. “I don’t know why, Tim. I never understood why we could know where you were, but never contact you. She never told me. I almost contacted you so many times when I was growing up...but I knew it would hurt mama.” Tim shook his head...none of this made any sense. 

Cheyenne sighed as she looked out at the water. “I can’t be sad how things worked out for you, Tim. You have a great life...I mean you’re a cop with the LAPD...and you have Lucy. Lucy’s the bomb.” Tim smiled at that. “Yeah, she is.” Cheyenne looked at him. “How did you and Lucy meet?” Tim laughed at the memory Cheyenne’s question had brought back...the first time he’d laid eyes on Lucy in the roll call room, and been told that he had gotten their ‘hotshot’ rookie. He certainly had...in more ways than one. “Lucy was my rookie. After you graduate from the police academy, you have to spend another year in training with a police officer...that’s your training officer. I trained her.” Cheyenne’s eyes went wide. “I know how it works...I want to be a police officer someday. You fell for your rookie? Seriously?” The way she had said it made Tim laugh even harder. “Yeah...it surprised basically everyone, because I was the last person people expected that from...the very last.” He looked at Cheyenne then, with his eyebrows raised. “You want to be a cop?” Cheyenne nodded. “Yeah...ever since I can remember.” Tim couldn’t hide the overwhelming sense of pride he felt at that. “Well, when the time comes, I’ll help you with that. We all will.” Cheyenne laughed at him. “It will be here sooner than you think. I already graduated high school.” Tim gaped at her. “You have? At sixteen? How?” Cheyenne waved her hand away...she never liked making a big deal out of it. “Let’s just say school and learning things has always been easy for me. Mama homeschooled me for my entire education, but I took the exams already, and have my diploma.” Tim couldn’t have been prouder of the daughter he barely knew. “So, what’s next?” Cheyenne sighed. “College, someday. Then the police academy...somewhere.” Just then, both of their stomachs growled at the same time, and they looked at each other and laughed. Tim stood up, and held out a hand for Cheyenne. She grabbed it, and he pulled her to her feet. “Let’s go get something to eat. Then we can do whatever.” Tim wound up spending the entire rest of the day with Cheyenne, and realized this had been one of the best days he’d ever had. And he owed it all to his, Boot, of course.

Tim and Cheyenne got back to his house around 8pm. Cheyenne walked into his house and froze...and then squealed with delight. “A puppy!” She dropped the bags she was carrying, and bounced over to Sheeba, Grayson’s Great Pyrenees puppy, who had already tripled in size since Tim had seen her last. Sheeba took about five seconds to decide Cheyenne was her new favorite person, and they began playing together. Grayson stood up. “Sorry, man, but I can’t leave her by herself overnight. She needs a ton of exercise and has to go potty often, or my house will end up paying for her destruction.” Tim just laughed. “It’s fine, really. And she and Cheyenne seemed to have hit it off.” Lucy came up to Tim and gave him a big hug and an even bigger kiss. “Did you guys have fun?” Tim hugged her deeply. “Yeah, we did.” He kissed Lucy’s forehead. Cheyenne yawned. All the traveling she’d done cross country, mostly on her own, had worn her out and she was still recovering. “I’m going to go shower and change.” She grabbed the two bags of clothes she had carried into the house and took them into the guest bedroom. Lucy eyed Tim. “You took her shopping?” Tim grinned. “Yeah...and it was the most fun I’ve ever had with shopping.” Lucy hugged him. “That’s because you did a dad thing with your daughter. I told you you needed this.” He nodded. “Yeah, I know.” Tim went over to the fridge and pulled out a beer for himself, and one for Grayson. Lucy recognized the look on Tim’s face and wondered what kind of shit he was about to give Grayson. She was just glad that finally Tim had found another target besides her. Tim sat down on the couch next to the recliner Grayson was sitting in. “So...Wells...what’s going on with you and my daughter?” Lucy’s eyes popped out of her head and she covered her mouth and laughed. Grayson rolled his eyes. “You’ve known about her for like five minutes...which I’m sorry for, but still. And she’s sixteen. There’s not a damn thing going on with her...she’s just a kid who grew up in a similar situation to mine, and I thought I could make a connection with her and help her out...and in doing that, I helped your case out concerning her mom, so yeah, you’re welcome.” Lucy busted out laughing. “Nicely done, Grayson.” He smiled as he sipped his beer. Tim smirked at him. “Just checking. She wouldn’t shut up about you when we were eating lunch.” Grayson sighed. “Figures. The one woman who could have me moved across the country...and the one woman who does want me is jailbait. Just shoot me now.” Lucy shook her head and laughed as she scooted over to Tim and snuggled up with him. Tim glanced around. “Where’s Jase?” Grayson and Lucy grinned at each other. Lucy smiled at Tim. “He’s telling Nyla goodbye.” Tim laughed. “Still?” Grayson smirked at him. “He’ll probably be telling her goodbye most of the night, I’d expect.” Just then, Cheyenne emerged from the guest bedroom in her new pajamas that Tim had bought her. She immediately got down on the floor and played with Sheeba, who had bounded over to greet Cheyenne like they were long lost best friends. Grayson smiled at them, as Cheyenne smiled back at him. Lucy and Tim watched them, and Lucy had a feeling that their story was just beginning...after all, Cheyenne wouldn’t be sixteen forever. She decided she wasn’t in such a hurry after all to play matchmaker with Grayson. Tim decided there was no better way to spend an evening with his fiancee wrapped in his arms as his fiancee, her partner, and himself watched his daughter play with a beautiful, and energetic puppy. 

Later that night, Tim and Lucy lay in bed together, after having worn each other out in the best of ways. Tim sighed. “It was such a great day, Luce. Cheyenne is so beautiful, and she’s brilliant...and I’m not exaggerating. She’s already graduated high school, at sixteen.” Lucy smiled at that. Tim let out a soft laugh. “She even wants to be a cop.” Lucy looked at him. “She does? Really?” Tim nodded his head, a look of pride on his face. “Yeah.” Lucy continued to stare at him, and noticed his dreamy stare. “What’s that look for?” He looked down at her and kissed her head. “I missed out on so many firsts with her...her first word, her first step, the first time she lost a tooth. I missed out on everything. But today, today was the first time she’d ever been to the beach, or ever seen the ocean. It was a milestone for her...and I got that one. I got to be a part of that. It made me realize how much I really want to be a father.” Lucy kissed him. “I’m so happy for you, Tim.” He looked down at her then and rolled over, on top of her. He looked at her tenderly. “I’d have missed out on that too, if it wasn’t for you, Boot.” Lucy wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled her face to his. “That’s why you should always listen to me.” He laughed and kissed her deeply, and she moaned his name. “Take me again, Tim…” Tim’s eyes heated, as the kiss went from sweet and loving to passionate and hot. And they took each other all over again. 

Master Sergeant Tom Phifer landed at LAX, finally. His plane was two hours late. After he finally collected his bags, he went to the rental car service, and rented a small car. He had thought the past long dead and buried, all the shit that had gone down at Ft. Bragg long over, until he happened to bump into Cheyenne one day at a small store. He had been on his way to a reunion of his Army unit, and had made a pit stop in that little po dunk town, at that little mom and pop store and had seen Cheyenne. He knew immediately who she was, and he had been floored. He had followed her back to her house, and sure enough, he’d found Krista too. He had found Tim Bradford’s address in Krista’s house, and knew Cheyenne would run to Tim...the same way Krista had always run to Tim, except for the night that Tom had raped her. He knew Tim knew nothing about that, because Tim had never come looking for him, and he damn well would have, if he’d known. Tom had never understood why Krista had had it so bad for Bradford, when she could have had him. He was better looking, he was higher in rank, and made more money. He had asked her out time and again, but she always turned him down. Well...he had taught that bitch a lesson. A couple of lessons in fact. He didn’t know how much Cheyenne had put together, but he had put it all together...all be it a little too late. And now he had to find Cheyenne, and Tim, and kill them both, before they put everything together and spilled his secrets.


	6. Run and Hide

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Master Sergeant Tom Phifer follows Cheyenne to California, and tracks her to Tim's house, determined to make sure his deadly secrets aren't revealed.Tim and Jase head to North Carolina to try and track down Cheyenne's mother. Grayson and Cheyenne have a heart to heart. Cheyenne takes matters into her own hands when she realizes the man who most likely killed her mother has arrived in California...and she'll do whatever she has to do to protect her newfound friends and family.

Lucy and Cheyenne had dropped Tim and Jase off at the airport. Lucy hugged Jase goodbye, as Tim was hugging Cheyenne. “I’m not sure when we’ll be back...probably a couple of days. I promise, we’ll do everything we can to find your mom, Cheyenne.” Cheyenne tearfully nodded. “I know you will. Could you check on my dog, Honey, while you’re out there? I had to leave her, and I have no idea if anyone has even thought to check on her.” Tim nodded. “I’ll take care of everything, I promise. I’ll call you tonight, ok?” Cheyenne nodded as she hugged Tim again. She was so scared for him and Jase to go to North Carolina...but if something did happen, at least she’d finally gotten to know her father, even if only for a short time. 

Tim let go of her and went to hug Lucy. He kissed her soundly. “Boot…” He just looked at her and Lucy smiled. “I know. Me too.” Tim grinned at her as he glanced at Cheyenne, who was laughing at something Jase said. He looked back at Lucy, who smiled at him. “I’ve got her back, Tim I promise. So does Grayson. We won’t let anything happen to her. You two be careful out there ok? You really don’t know what exactly you’re walking into.” Tim nodded, and kissed Lucy one more time before he and Jase said goodbye. After they were gone, Lucy turned to look at Cheyenne and smiled at her. “You want to go get something to eat?” Cheyenne shook her head. “No. I’m too nervous to eat anything.” Lucy gave her a big hug. “I know...but Tim and Jase can handle themselves...they’ll be fine. Well, I’m starving, so, do you mind if we hit a drive through on the way home?” Cheyenne smiled at her, as they headed out of the airport. 

An hour later, Lucy was pulling into Tim’s garage...she still thought of it as Tim’s even though it was now hers too. Cheyenne had decided that she was in fact hungry, so, Lucy had stopped at a chinese takeout place and had basically ordered the entire menu. She and Cheyenne carried in two cardboard boxes full of chinese take out. They sat them on the counter, as Grayson came into the kitchen. “I would have helped…” He frowned as he saw all of the food. “Are we feeding an army?” Lucy laughed. “Well, Cheyenne’s never really had chinese before, so, I bought a little of this and a little of that, that way she could try it all and see what she likes.” Grayson grinned as he came over to get the food out of the boxes. “So, this will be a late lunch, and maybe snacks for dinner?” Lucy nodded, and before long, they had unpacked the food, and had plates piled high with a little of this and a little of that. They stuffed themselves on chinese takeout...and Cheyenne didn’t like it...she freaking loved it.

Cheyenne leaned back in her chair, pleasantly stuffed. She had just decided that chinese take out was her new favorite food. “That was awesome!” Lucy laughed at her as Grayson smiled. Cheyenne frowned at them. “Ummm...don’t you two have to work?” Lucy carried the plates to the kitchen as Grayson shook his head. “Nope. Today and tomorrow are our off days. After that...we’ll figure out what to do with you.” He gave her ear a tug as he stood up, and groaned. “I ate WAY too much.” Cheyenne stood up too and cleared away the rest of the dishes from the table and carried them into the kitchen. Lucy smiled at her. “Thanks.” She took the plates from Cheyenne, and loaded them into the dishwasher, She turned it on, and then went back into the living room, flopping on the couch. Grayson frowned at her. “You alright?” Lucy stifled a yawn at him and smiled. “Yep...late night.” Grayson caught the look Lucy was giving him. He smirked at her. “Ah...then I don’t suppose you want to go for a walk with me and Sheeba? If I don’t walk her, she’ll be waking all of us up at about 3am with way too much energy.” Lucy laughed. “No, definitely not...I’m fine right here.” Cheyenne kept glancing at her cell phone, hoping Tim would call, but she knew he probably hadn’t made it to North Carolina yet. But she couldn’t stop worrying about him. Lucy glanced at Cheyenne, and saw how anxious she was. Lucy pointedly looked at Grayson, then glanced at Cheyenne, before looking back at him. Grayson nodded. He simply grabbed Sheeba’s leash off the coat tree by the front door, and waved it in front of Sheeba. Sheeba immediately recognized it, and knew what it meant, and began jumping off the ground. Grayson laughed. “Ok, princess, we’ll go for a walk. Just hold still for five seconds so I can get your leash attached to your collar…” Once he had successfully done that, he dropped the leash into Cheyenne’s lap. “C’mon, kid. You gotta earn your keep around here. Besides...Chen over there is about to pass out as it is. Let’s take my princess for a walk so we can all get a decent night’s sleep tonight.” Cheyenne laughed as Sheeba all but jumped into her lap, trying to hurry her humans up. “Ok, ok, ok girl, I’m coming.” As soon as Cheyenne stood up, Sheeba tugged her all the way to the front door. Lucy laughed as Grayson rushed after them. He grabbed the leash from Cheyenne. “I’ll hold the leash so she won’t drag you down the street.” He looked back at Lucy who was fighting sleep. “We’ll be back in about fifteen?” Lucy nodded as Grayson, Cheyenne, and Sheeba walked out of Tim’s house...and about five minutes later, Lucy was fast asleep.

Grayson, Cheyenne, and Sheeba were walking down the street, in silence. Sheeba would occasionally stop and sniff the grass, or a tree. Grayson figured if Cheyenne wanted to talk, she would, so, he stayed quiet, letting her take the lead. 

Cheyenne sighed as she looked at Grayson. “I wish they hadn’t left.” Grayson looked at her. “They’ll be ok...don’t worry. I know it’s hard not to, but, they’ll be fine.” Cheyenne wanted to change the subject. “Did Tim tell you I want to be a cop someday?” Grayson raised his eyebrows in surprise. “You do? Really?” Cheyenne nodded. “Yeah. I’ve always wanted to. I guess I get it from my mom. That was going to be her plan after she finished with the Army...but then I came along, and plans got changed I guess.” Grayson nodded at that as they rounded a corner, and continued walking. Cheyenne laughed as Sheeba tried to pull Grayson along faster. “Anyway, Once I get the through college, I’ll be able to start the academy at 20.” Grayson frowned at her. “Ummm...yes, 20 is the accepted age for the academy here, but, won’t you be 22 when you finish college?” Cheyenne laughed and shook her head. “No...I guess Tim didn’t tell you that part either. I’m done with high school already.” Grayson looked at her...she kept surprising him. “What are you...like a genius or something?” Cheyenne shyly looked away from him. She always hated telling people about this part of herself...because even though it was an awesome quality to have, since she’d been so sheltered, it had made her feel like a freak. “Yeah, basically. I could read by the time I was 2, and I was writing complete sentences by the time I was 4.” Grayson let out a low whistle. “Wow...that’s very impressive. I barely made it through school by the skin of my teeth. Of course, it probably would have helped if I had actually studied for longer than five minutes, but, school, while important, was never my favorite thing to do.” Cheyenne rolled her eyes. “It’s usually not anyone’s favorite thing to do. I wish I wasn’t a genius. I just want to be normal.” Grayson stopped walking then and turned to look at her, and pointed at her. “Don’t do that crap, Cheyenne.” Cheyenne frowned at him. “Do what?” Grayson rolled his eyes. “Don’t apologize for being who you are...ever. Be proud of who you are. Who you are is pretty freaking amazing, if you ask me.” Cheyenne smiled at him, as they continued walking. She glanced at Grayson, and finally asked him the question that was weighing heavily on her mind. “Grayson...what’s going to happen to me when all this is over?” Grayson looked at her, and shrugged. “I’m not sure...what exactly do you mean?” Cheyenne sighed. “Where am I going to live? What’s going to happen to me? I mean, Tim and Lucy are great, but they’re getting married soon, and starting that part of their lives...they’ll probably want babies soon after that.” Grayson nodded, as everything Cheyenne had just said was true. “Yeah, probably. So?” Cheyenne sighed heavily. “So...I don’t fit into that picture. I’m just a kid my dad knew nothing about until a couple of days ago. They won’t want me.” Grayson looked at her. “Have you talked to Tim and Lucy about this? Have you told them you want to live with them?” Cheyenne shook her head. “Tim won’t want me. He’s got his happily ever after already. I’m not a part of that.” Grayson just smiled at her. “Cheyenne, you don’t know that. Ask him...you might just be surprised. I know life’s taught you differently, but, sometimes people can surprise you...in a good way.” Cheyenne thought about what Grayson had told her as they continued to walk. 

Just then, Sheeba decided her humans were too slow, and yanked hard on the leash, and Grayson lost his grip on it. Sheeba went flying down the street. Grayson swore. “Damnit...Sheeba!” Sheeba froze at the sound of her name and turned and looked at Grayson, happily wagging her tail. Grayson was trotting up to her, and got the leash. As he bent down to fuss at Sheeba, who was bathing Grayson’s face in kisses, Cheyenne couldn’t help but laugh at them. She glanced up the street then and saw the small car that was slowly driving towards them...and immediately recognized the man behind the wheel. Oh no...it couldn’t be. Somehow he had followed her all the way out here to California, and had found her, again. Cheyenne wanted to scream a warning at Grayson...but then she looked at Grayson again, and didn’t dare. Grayson had become her savior, and best friend. She had to protect him, and Lucy too. She couldn’t let that man hurt anyone else that she cared about. Cheyenne ran up to Grayson. “Hey...can we head back now? I’m thirsty and need to use the bathroom like really bad.” Grayson glanced at her and laughed. “Sure. C’mon, brat, I’ll race you back.” Just then, Grayson and Sheeba took off. Cheyenne laughed and raced after them...occasionally glancing nervously over her shoulder. But the car she had seen with the man who’s face she’d never forget was gone.

Later that evening, after they had had seconds of chinese food for dinner, everyone was tired...especially Lucy. She was afraid she was coming down with something. Cheyenne wasn’t tired at all however, she was nervous, and anxious. Lucy hadn’t noticed it due to how tired she was, but Grayson had noticed. He knew Cheyenne was up to something...he just didn’t know what. 

After Cheyenne had volunteered to take Sheeba out to potty one last time for the night, and had also checked out Tim’s entire house, to make sure she had a way to escape, it was bedtime for everyone. Lucy had fallen asleep in front of the tv. Grayson had roused her enough to make her to go bed. Cheyenne would take the guest room, again, and Grayson would stretch out on the new sectional couch that Tim had bought the week before Lucy had moved in. It was big and comfortable. Cheyenne looked at him as he was stretched out on the couch, under a blanket. “Goodnight, Grayson.” The look she was giving him was definitely the look of a schoolgirl crush...but it was also one of complete and utter sadness. He smiled at her. “Goodnight, brat. Thanks for taking Sheeba out for me.” Cheyenne nodded, and quickly padded to the guest room, not looking back at him as she shut the door. Grayson waited for about five minutes before throwing the blanket off, and quickly put his shoes back on. He was still dressed, in shorts and a tee shirt. Sheeba was sound asleep in her big dog crate, and Grayson was careful not to disturb her. Grayson quickly slipped out the front door...and waited.

Cheyenne fought back the tears. She had to get out of here...she couldn’t put Lucy or Grayson in danger. And they apparently were now that that horrible man had found her again. But at least now she knew Tim and Jase were ok. Cheyenne grabbed the ratty bag she came to California with, stuffed with some of the new clothes Tim had bought her, and quietly slipped out of the guest bedroom window, and fell to the ground, landing on her feet. Thankfully she was tall enough that it wasn’t much of a drop for her at all. She looked around, and fled into the night, unaware that Grayson had been hiding behind a tree in the front yard, and was watching her. He stealthly followed her, wondering what in the hell she was up to. If that horrible man was following her, then Cheyenne would do her best to lead him the hell away from Grayson and Lucy. And maybe this time she’d confront him, and get some answers out of him about what had happened to her mother. She knew if she could find him, that he’d follow her. 

She ran down Tim’s street and stopped at an intersection with one of the neighboring streets. She glanced around in all directions...but she didn’t see anyone. Damnit! She knew he had to be around here somewhere. She crossed the intersection and rounded a corner, and decided to go down that street, when she froze. There! She saw the same car driving down the street that she had seen earlier that evening, with it’s headlights turned off. She stood still long enough to make sure the man had seen her, when she turned and quickly began walking in the opposite direction, leading him out of Tim’s neighborhood. 

Grayson frowned at her. What in the hell is she doing? He continued to stay far enough behind her that she wouldn’t see him, and he hid behind trees and bushes when he could. It was then he heard a car and glanced over his shoulder. Huh...weird. He’d never seen that car before in Tim’s neighborhood, and he’d been over to Tim’s house enough that he recognized most of the neighbor’s vehicles by now. And it was also driving really slowly, with it’s headlights off. Not a good sign. He stayed hidden and watched it, and then he realized it was most likely following Cheyenne. Fuck! Grayson came out of his hiding place and raced to Cheyenne. 

Cheyenne glanced over her shoulder and saw the car speeding up. She began running, and the car sped up even more. Cheyenne was running as fast as she could now, smiling to herself as her plan seemed to be working. If she could just get the guy a little farther out of the neighborhood, she’d be able to confront him, or so she thought. She rounded another corner, and was running as fast as she could, when she tripped and fell, knocking the wind out of her. She groaned, but forced herself to get up. Just as she started to run again past a big oak tree that was at the edge of one of the biggest yards in the neighborhood, she felt a pair of strong arms reach out and grab her and ram her against the oak, covering her mouth. Cheyenne started to struggle until she realized it was Grayson. “Quiet!” He hissed at her as he pinned her against the massive tree with his body, shielding her from whatever threat had made her bolt. The car drove slowly past them, but the tree provided just enough cover to where they weren’t seen from the road. The car turned around and made another pass by them. Cheyenne began to shiver with fear, and all but melted into Grayson. He whispered in her ear. “The car is coming back, don’t move.” Cheyenne froze in place as Grayson watched the driver of the car slam his hand against the steering wheel. Clearly, the driver thought Cheyenne was now gone. The car sped up again, and quickly drove away and out of sight. Grayson kept Cheyenne pinned against the tree for several minutes, making sure the car didn’t come back. He finally let go of her and stepped away. “Ok...I think whoever that was is gone now.” Cheyenne felt the relief wash over her, and started to move, but Grayson shook his head and pinned her against the tree again. “Oh, no...you’re not going anywhere until you tell me what the hell that was all about. What the hell are you trying to do Cheyenne?” Grayson glared at her, as Cheyenne felt the tears coming and she couldn’t stop them. She was crying so hard, Grayson could barely understand her. “I was trying to keep you and Lucy safe!” Grayson softened his expression, but he hadn’t let go of her. “Who the hell was that?” Cheyenne hiccuped as she looked off into the direction the car had gone. “That was the man who killed my mother. He found me...and I wasn’t about to let him do anything to you or Lucy...not after what he did to my mama.” Cheyenne began to cry even harder then, as Grayson swore and pulled her into his arms. He sighed….and then a feeling of dread hit him. If he had found Cheyenne, then he probably knew where Tim’s house was. They had to get back to Lucy. He grabbed Cheyenne and began dragging him with her as they raced back to Tim’s house. He glanced at Cheyenne. “We have to get to Lucy!” Cheyenne nodded, and turned on the speed, and actually outran Grayson. They got back to Tim’s house and Grayson burst in the door, ready for anything...but all was silent. He glanced at Sheeba, who had lazily lifted her head and looked rather annoyed at having her restful slumber disturbed. But then she started whining, eager to get out, thinking it was playtime. Cheyenne went to her crate and unlocked and opened the door, and Sheeba burst out, tackling Cheyenne to the floor.

The noise brought Lucy out of her bedroom just as Grayson had opened the door to check on her. “Jesus!” Lucy quickly lowered the gun she’d been holding as she all but plowed into Grayson. Grayson closed his eyes in relief...Lucy was fine. The guy had apparently not come to Tim’s house. Lucy glared at Grayson and then at Cheyenne. “What the hell are you two doing? It’s almost midnight!” Grayson then glared at Cheyenne, who crumpled under their glares, and began sobbing. Lucy grimaced, and rushed to put the gun back in the small gun safe she had in the closet. She came back into the living room and found Grayson on the floor, holding a weeping Cheyenne in his lap. Lucy’s heart broke at the sounds that were coming out of the terrified teenager. She glanced worriedly at Grayson. “What happened?” Grayson sighed, and told Lucy about the night’s events as Cheyenne continued to sob. Lucy rolled her eyes in frustration. “Damnit, Chey! You could have been hurt, or worse!” But then Lucy pulled Cheyenne from Grayson’s lap into hers and held her tightly. She rocked her as she would a small child and tried to soothe her. “It’s ok sweetie. We’re not going to let anything happen to you.” 

Grayson grimly looked at Lucy and took charge of the situation. “We have to get out of here...that guy could come back. He obviously knows where Tim’s house is. We can’t stay here.” Lucy nodded, but looked at him helplessly. “Where can we go at this hour? A hotel?” Grayson shook his head. “Nope. We’re all going back to my house. Doubtful the guy knows where I live since I’m not connected to any of you, and it’s the best option at this hour.” Lucy nodded, and within ten minutes, they were all dressed, and headed for Grayson’s house. Lucy hoped that Tim and Jase were having better luck in North Carolina than she and Grayson were having in California.


	7. North Carolina

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tim and Jase make it to North Carolina. Tim finds an old friend of Krista's who gives him a letter, that explains everything. But, there's two big questions that still remain...Where is Krista? And is she still alive, or is she dead?

Tim had just gotten off the phone with Lucy, and was frowning. Jase looked at him. “What’s up?” Tim sighed. “The guy we’re looking for is apparently in California. He somehow tracked Cheyenne there.” Jase scowled. “So what do you want to do? Head back?” Tim shook his head. “No, not yet. Lucy and Grayson can handle things for a couple of days. Some of the answers were need are here, in North Carolina. Besides, I have to find Krista, or at least find out what happened to her.” Jase nodded, as he and Tim pulled up in front of a tiny house, in the tiny town of Stoney Creek, NC. The address of the house had been included in the information that Monica had dug up and had passed on to Tim. Tim frowned at the house as Jase sighed. “Well, at least it’s got walls and a roof.” Tim rolled his eyes. “The place is a dump. Why the hell would Krista live here, let alone raise Cheyenne here? She was capable of more than this.” Tim glanced around and saw no other houses around...he wondered how much of the land the house was sitting on Krista actually owned.

Just then, Tim and Jase saw a small light come on inside the house. Jase looked at Tim. “Well...someone is obviously home.” Tim nodded. “Let’s go.” Despite the incredibly early hour, Tim and Jase had hit the ground running when they landed in North Carolina. They hadn’t even bothered to check into a hotel yet. Tim and Jase got out of their rental car and cautiously approached the house. Just as they were walking to the front door, it opened, and a woman about Tim’s age came out of it, carrying a bag of dog food. She froze when she saw Tim and Jase, and began screaming. They ran up to her, before she could alert anyone to their presence...although as Tim glanced around, he realized there was probably no one around to hear her anyway. Jase took charge of the situation. “Hush! We’re not here to hurt you!” To Jase’s surprise, the woman hauled back and clocked him, and was about to do the same to Tim, but Tim was quicker, and grabbed her. “What the hell?” Tim and the woman began struggling, as Jase rubbed his jaw. He was pretty impressed that she had gotten that one past him...he must be more tired than he thought.

Tim was trying to calm the woman down, and wasn’t having much luck. “Lady...I’m a cop. Hold still...I said I’m a damn cop!” The woman suddenly froze, and squinted in the darkness at him. She recognized that voice. “Tim? Tim Bradford?” Tim suddenly let go of her...how the hell did she know his name? Jase was quickly looking between them, when Tim suddenly recognized her. “Kelly?” The woman nodded...and relief was evident on her face. “Well...it’s been a long time Bradford. Sorry for hitting your friend.” Jase sized her up. “Ok, so you obviously know each other. Mind cluing me in? I’d like to meet the woman who officially clocked me.” Tim rolled his eyes. “Kelly Weaver, this is my cousin Chief Jase Billings. Jase, this is Kelly Weaver...she was Krista’s best friend.” Jase nodded at her, as Kelly looked at Tim fearfully then. “Tim...please tell me you know where they are.” Tim sighed and looked at her. “I know where Cheyenne is...she’s safe. But I have no idea where Krista is. That’s why we’re here. Why are you here? And what are you doing in her house? Do you know where she is? Do you know what happened?” Kelly sighed, and looked down at her feet, before sadly looking up at Tim. “I came over to get the dog food for Honey...I’ve got her back at my house. My shift ended early tonight, so I was stopping on the way home to get the dog food. And no, I have no idea where Krista is. But I do know everything, Tim...and it’s time you did too.” It was then Tim and Jase noticed her EMT uniform. Kelly sighed and looked at them, as she picked up the bag of dog food she had dropped in her scuffle with them. “C’mon...I’ll take ya’ll back to my house. I have something for you, Tim. It’s from Krista.” Tim looked at Jase and frowned as they followed Kelly back to her car. Tim and Jase got into their rental car as Kelly got into her small car, and they followed her the short distance from Krista’s house to hers. 

They all pulled up in front of a house slightly bigger than Krista’s. It was in a neighborhood, and not out in the middle of nowhere as Krista’s had been. They noticed Kelly wincing as she got out of her car and Jase frowned at her. “Rough shift?” Kelly nodded. “Methhead, didn’t want to go to the hospital, and wasn’t very cooperative when we tried to help him. He landed a kick to my ribs when we were loading him onto the stretcher...that’s why I got off shift early tonight.” Tim grabbed the bag of dog food from her, and she smiled her thanks at him. They walked to her front door, and she unlocked it. She opened it to the very excited barks of a what looked like a golden retriever. Kelly smiled. “Hi Honey...I brought you some food...and some new friends.” Honey was in her elderly years now, but she could still get around pretty well. She wagged her tail excitedly as she sniffed her new friends. Tim smiled and petted her, as did Jase. Tim looked at Kelly. “Where should I put this?” Kelly pointed to the kitchen. “Just set it on the table in there. I’ll deal with it later.” Tim walked the short distance from her small living room into her kitchen. He set the bag of dog food on the table, and glanced around the kitchen as he did so. It was small, but clean. Then he saw the pictures on the fridge, and froze. There were several pictures of Krista, Kelly, and Cheyenne on the front of the fridge, held in place with magnets. Tim went up to them and looked at them. Cheyenne looked almost exactly like her mother, except she was much taller. And clearly, she and her mother were very, very close. Tim’s heart ached as he saw the bright smile that Cheyenne had indeed inherited from her mother. There were pictures of them laughing, smiling, and hugging. Tim closed his eyes, and hoped he could give Cheyenne back her mother, but, it wasn’t looking good. 

He hadn’t noticed that Kelly had left the room...or that she had returned with a yellowed envelope. “Tim...this is for you. I was supposed to give this to you if anything ever happened to Krista...and I’m pretty sure something has.” Tim glanced in surprise as he took the envelope from Kelly. Jase had come into the kitchen, and noticed the crestfallen expression on Tim’s face. Tim looked back at Kelly. “Tell me what you know Kelly...please.” Kelly blinked the tears away. “That letter explains almost everything, Tim. Read it first, and then I’ll tell you what I know. I’m going to go change while you read that.” Kelly turned on her heel, and went to her tiny bedroom and shut the door. Tim sighed as he sat down and took out the letter that had obviously been written long ago. He began to read it, and his heart began to ache even more. 

‘Tim...If you’re reading this, it means I’m gone. Please take care of Cheyenne. You’re the only one I can trust to take care of her and protect her and love her the way I do. I’m sorry to have to tell you this way, and I’m sorry for leaving you...but I had to. Please know how very much I loved you, and how much I did want to marry you. I know you were going to ask me that last night, and I’m sorry you never got the chance. If you had, I’d have said yes.

The reason I left is because of what happened to me. During the brief time we split, I made a very bad decision that changed everything. I finally said yes to Tom and went out on a date with him. He had been harassing me for months to go out with him, and I finally said yes. It’s the worst thing I could have done. He raped me, after our date. I wanted to tell you, but I was so ashamed I just couldn’t. And then you and I got back together, and I thought everything would be fine and that I could just forget. But two months after you and I got back together, I found out I was pregnant. I was hoping so badly the baby was yours, but I knew there was no way it could be. I couldn’t tell you because I know you’d have gone after Tom, and killed him. You would have ruined your life and career over him, and I couldn’t let you do that.

The night I left, while you were in the bathroom, Tom came into the restaurant and saw me. He gave me a funny look, and I was terrified. I had to leave...I couldn’t let him know that he had fathered my child and I was afraid that somehow he had already found out. I had to protect Cheyenne from the monster her father is. I so wish that you were her father.

I know if Tom ever finds me or finds out about Cheyenne he’ll come after us. If you’re reading this, it means he did come after us. I can only hope I survived it, but just in case, I’m writing this letter. Please take care of Cheyenne. Please let her know how much I love her, and that I’ll always be with her. 

You’re the only man I ever loved, and the only man I wanted as my husband. In my heart, you always will be. I hope that you have managed to find love and happiness again, and I hope that someday, you’ll forgive me and understand why I had to leave. Please be happy, Tim. No one deserves it more than you.

All My Love,  
Krista’

Tim read the letter three times, before silently handing it to Jase. He closed his eyes, and sighed deeply. Krista had been right to do what she had done, and he knew it. He knew that if she had ever told him what Tom had done to her, Tim would have gone after him. He opened his eyes as he heard Jase sigh. “Damn...I’m sorry bro. Really. This freaking sucks.” 

Just then Kelly came back into the room, dressed in a pair of shorts and a tee shirt. She sighed as she looked at Tim. “Is Cheyenne really ok?” Tim nodded, having trouble finding his voice. He cleared his throat. “Yeah...she made it all the way to California where I live now. She’s staying with my fiancee while I’m out here.” Kelly sighed with relief and closed her eyes. “Thank God...I’ve been so worried.” She opened her eyes and looked back at Tim, shaking her head. “Please don’t be mad at Krista, Tim.” He sighed. “I’m not mad at her...she’s right. I probably would have gone after that fucker and ruined my life. But I am completely confused. Krista says in that letter that I’m not Cheyenne’s father. So why the hell did she tell Cheyenne all this time that I am?” Kelly went to her fridge and grabbed three beers out of it. She opened them and handed one each to Tim and Jase, before drinking the neck of hers. She sadly looked at Tim. “She didn’t want Cheyenne to know that Cheyenne’s a product of a rape. And she sure as hell didn’t want Tom to know that he’s Cheyenne’s father. That prick is fucked up enough to where if he had found out, he’d have tried to be a part of Cheyenne’s life...not because he wanted to be a father, but because he wanted to fuck up Krista more than he already had.” Tim took a sip of his beer, trying to hold onto his rage. Jase spoke up. “What a prick.” Kelly looked at Jase. “You have no idea...Tom was obsessed with Krista. He wanted her so badly. But Krista was crazy about Tim, and wanted nothing to do with Tom. He wouldn’t leave her alone. And when Tim and Krista briefly broke up, Tom found out, and he went after Krista, hard. He was always calling her, always trying to date her, constantly following her.” Tim sighed...if only he had known, Krista might still be here. Kelly took a long pull from her beer before continuing. “She thought if she agreed to go out with him once, that would make him settle down. But it didn’t...it just made everything worse. The night they went out on a date, he raped her. He brought her back to my house, and she was a mess. Her dress was torn, her hair was a mess, her her face was swollen and bloody from where he’d hit her when she’d tried to fight him off.” Jase swore softly and shook his head. He frowned at Kelly. “Why the hell is he not in jail?” Kelly sighed. “Krista tried to have him arrested. She filed a report against him with the base...because the rape happened on base, in his office.” Jase frowned at that, and Tim looked grimly at him. “Tom Phifer...it was Sgt. Tom Phifer then, was our platoon leader.” Jase rolled his eyes...finally understanding. “And we all know what happens when our superiors are the ones that fuck us over.” Kelly nodded. “Krista tried to report it...but the MP’s basically laughed at her. There wasn’t a lot of support for sexual assault victims at Ft. Bragg back then. So when reporting it failed, she tried to forget it. Then she and Tim got back together, and it wasn’t long after that, that she found out she was pregnant. She knew what Tim would do if he found out what happened, and she knew what Tom would do if he found out about the baby. So, she filed for a medical separation from the Army, and got it, and left town. When Cheyenne was born, to help hide her, she had Tim’s name put on Cheyenne’s birth certificate.” 

Tim sighed taking in all this newly learned information, when Kelly went up to him. “Tim...I tried so hard, so many times, to convince her to tell you what happened. Even if you weren’t Cheyenne’s biological father, I knew how much you loved Krista, and I know how much you would have loved Cheyenne. But Krista was terrified for anyone at Ft. Bragg to find out about Cheyenne. She just didn’t see any other way to protect herself, or Cheyenne, from Tom.” Tim nodded...it was a fucked up reality in the military, but he understood why Krista had done what she had done. Sexual assault in the military was a major problem, and sometimes it was met with retaliation against the victim. He sighed...they still had to find Krista. “Ok...now that I have a lot more of the back story...what happened recently? Cheyenne told me that Krista went to meet Tom for drinks, and disappeared...why would she do that?” Kelly tearfully looked at him. “Because, Tom found out about Cheyenne. He’s Master Sergeant Tom Phifer now...and he was on his way to Ft. Bragg for a reunion of the unit he and Krista and you were in when you were all stationed there. It was just bad luck...he stopped at a little mom and pop grocery store/gas station, and it just happened to be one that Cheyenne shops at. He was in there at the same time she was, and he saw her. She looks exactly like Krista, as you now know. It didn’t take much for Tom to put it together. He tracked Krista’s contact information down and called her and threatened to take Cheyenne from her. He told her he’d have no problem getting custody of Cheyenne, that Krista was a deadbeat mom, and that maybe Cheyenne would give him what Krista never would. She went to meet him for drinks to try and talk him out of whatever he had planned. I don’t know if she ever met up with him, all I know is she disappeared that night, and no one has seen her since, and the cops aren’t exactly working fast to find her.” 

Tim finished his beer as he looked at Kelly. “Well, that’s about to change. I’m not leaving here until I find her.” Jase nodded in agreement. First thing in the morning, they were going to go talk to whoever was supposed to be investigating Krista’s disappearance, and light a fire under their asses. In the meantime, Tim was going to make some calls. Master Sergeant Tom Phifer was not going to get away with what he’d done to Krista. Tim vowed to make that bastard pay for all the lives he had ruined.


	8. Stoney Creek

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tim and Jase meet the detective who was supposed to investigate Krista's disappearance, and realize he's done pratically nothing. Tim and Jase set off to find Krista...or at least find out what happened to her.

Because of the late hour that Tim and Jase finally crashed, they wound up spending the night at Krista’s house. They both grabbed a quick nap, showers, and coffee. By 9am, they were strolling through the front entrance of the tiny police department in Stoney Creek. The entire department wasn’t much bigger than the roll call room back at Mid Wilshire. Tim and Jase glanced at each other and knew that answers would probably be few, if any. 

They went to the small front desk that clearly served as the information desk to the general public. The woman who was sitting behind it looked up and frowned at Jase and Tim. Tim surmised that she probably knew everyone in town, and would immediately know he and Jase were strangers. The woman who’s name tag read ‘Pamela’ stared at them. She wasn’t overly friendly, but she wasn’t rude either...just cautious. She raised her eyebrows as she spoke. “May I help you gentlemen?” Tim nodded, and immediately pulled out his badge. He nodded to her as he greeted her. “Yes, Ma’am, if you don’t mind. I’m Officer Tim Bradford with the LAPD, I’d like to speak to whoever is in charge in investigating the disappearance of Krista Cooper.” Pamela gaped at him. “You’re a long way from home, Officer Bradford. Why in the world would Krista’s case interest the LAPD?” Tim carefully schooled his features and kept his expression friendly. “It’s a personal matter.” Pamela sighed. “Go down the hallway to your left there. Second office...you’ll want to speak to Detective Hank Morrison. He’s in charge of her case.” Tim and Jase both caught the unfriendly expression that had fallen over Pamela’s face as she had mentioned Detective Morrison’s name. They wondered what that was all about. Tim smiled at her. “Thank you, ma’am.” He glanced at Jase, who shook his head. “I’ll wait here...I don’t expect this will take you very long.” Tim had bad feeling that Jase was right. 

Ten minutes later, Tim and Detective Morrison were glaring at each other. Detective Morrison sighed. “Look, Officer Bradford, I can appreciate your position. If I had anything to give you, I would. But the plain truth is no one really gives a shit if some deadbeat hooker mom abandoned her daughter or not. I wasted three weeks looking for Krista. She’s gone. She took off...she screwed her daughter over, same as she did the folks up at Ft. Bragg. Now her daughter is gone too...I’ve got real crimes to investigate, with real victims. If something really bad had actually happened to Krista or her daughter, one of them would have turned up by now.” Tim struggled to hold onto his temper. “Fine...then at least give me what you do have. What’s the harm? You clearly don’t have the time to investigate Krista’s case anyway.” Detective Morrison frowned at him. “It’s not a policy of this department to just hand out case files to curious third parties. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have real work to do.” Detective Morrison turned his back on Tim, and considered the matter closed. Tim glared at Detective Morrison’s back...Cheyenne had been right. The cops here weren’t doing shit to find Krista...but he damn well was. He shook his head and left the office. Jase had been standing at the information desk chatting up Pamela. Pamela looked at Tim sympathetically. “I’m sorry Officer Bradford. I knew you wouldn’t have any luck.” Tim raied his eyebrows in surprise at Pamela. She glanced around, making sure no one was within earshot, before she spoke to Tim again. “Krista was who she was...and ok, maybe she did some things she shouldn’t have. But overall she was a good person...and she was a great mother. She took such good care of Cheyenne. She loved that girl more than anything, and would have done anything for her. Here...take this with you.” It was then that Pamela had all but shoved Krista’s case file into Tim’s hands. He smiled at her, but glanced over his shoulder before looking back at her. “Thank you very much for this. But...won’t you get intro trouble for giving me this?” Pamela laughed and waved him off. “I’ve got dirt on just about every single cop in this department. They know not to cross me.” Tim smiled at her as did Jase. They both quickly left the department with the case file. They got into their rental car and drove off, pulling into the first gas station they found. Tim parked, and quickly began skimming through the very thin case file...there was barely anything in it. There was a list of bars that Detective Morrison was going to check out...according to his notes, he had only checked out one of them. Jase frowned at Tim. “Well...that’s not very helpful.” Tim sighed and closed his eyes. He tried to stop looking at her disappearance through his own eyes, and instead looked at it through cop eyes. He opened them again, and looked through the case file again. He sighed. “Ok...there’s only three bars in this town, only one of which was checked concerning Krista. Let’s go check all of them out...if Tom did actually meet her for drinks, he’d have met her here, in Stoney Creek, not at Ft. Bragg.” Jase nodded in agreement. “Yep. Ft. Bragg is a huge base...lots more people, lots more bars close to the base, which means lots more potential witnesses.” Tim nodded, and pulled out of the gas station, headed for the first bar on their list. 

While Tim and Jase were chasing down leads on Krista, Lucy and Grayson were glaring at Cheyenne. She was sitting down at Grayson’s tiny breakfast table, while Lucy and Grayson were standing...it was enough to make Grayson tower over Cheyenne...but Lucy was barely above eye level with her. Grayson closed his eyes, struggling to hold onto his patience. “Look...Cheyenne. We appreciate you trying to protect us. But sweetheart, you’re not a cop. You leave the cop stuff to me and Chen, got it?” Lucy crossed her arms and frowned at Cheyenne. “Cheyenne, do you have any idea how much you scared me last night? How much you scared Grayson? And what about Tim? Did you bother to stop and think at all about him before you took off the way you did?” Cheyenne sighed as she looked down at the floor. She briefly looked up at both of them. “You’re right. I’m sorry.” Lucy closed her eyes and sighed. She went over to Cheyenne and sat next to her. ‘Cheyenne, look...I know this is a hard, scary situation. I know you’re afraid for yourself, and me and Grayson and Tim. I know you miss your mom and want to find her. You have to trust us to handle this. And we will handle this, Cheyenne, you have my word on that. But these things...they take time. I know it’s hard, but you have to hang in there with us, ok? Give us a chance to work on this. Because I promise you, we will keep you safe, and we will do everything we can to find your mom, ok?” Cheyenne tearfully nodded, as Lucy pulled her into a hard hug. But Lucy wasn’t yet aware of all of Cheyenne’s fears. Cheyenne wasn’t just afraid that she would never see her mom again...she was also afraid of what it meant for her if they didn’t find her mom. Lucy didn’t yet understand that...but as Cheyenne glanced at Grayson, and saw the determination on his face, she knew he understood exactly what all her fears were. 

Back in Stoney Creek, Tim and Jase had just pulled up to the third bar on their list. Tim looked at Jase with troubled eyes. It was a tiny bar...and it sat on the banks of the Stoney Creek River. Jase sighed as he looked at Tim. “Morrison never checked this place out, did he?” Tim shook his head. “No. And it said right here in his damn case file that this bar was a “priority.” Tim closed his eyes, and rested his head wearily against the steering wheel. Then he sat back up...he had to keep his head in the game. He and Jase got out of the car, together. Jase looked at Tim over the roof of the car as they shut their doors. “You know...if something did happen to her, she’s probably somewhere around here, right? I mean look around...it’s right by the damn river.” Tim nodded grimly. “Yeah, I know.” Tim squared his shoulders and walked into the bar, followed closely by Jase. The bar wasn’t yet open that day for business, but nevertheless, the front doors were unlocked. Tim went up to the bar and saw an older man wiping the stained mahogany bartop off. The older man glanced up as Jase and Tim sat down. “Help ya? We’re not open for business yet boys.” Tim nodded as Jase smiled at the “boys” reference. Of course to the older man, Tim and Jase probably did look like boys to him. Tim sighed. He pulled out a picture of Krista. “I’m looking for this woman...her name is Krista Cooper. I was wondering if you or one of your employees had seen her?” The older man sighed and nodded. “Yeah, I know Krista. She comes in here pretty regularly. Haven’t seen her in going on two months I guess. Figured she moved or something.” Tim nodded. “Do you remember when you saw her last?” The older man nodded, and held out his hand, which Tim shook. “My name’s Rob. Krista was in here a couple of months ago meeting someone. Guy about your age I’d guess. Anyway, he showed up, and they had a drink together. And a fight if I recall correctly. Nothing physical, just some yelling. Anyway, Krista stormed out, and that guy followed her outside. I was going to go check on her, make sure she was ok, but we were really busy. I finally did go check on her, but by the time I got outside, she was gone.” Tim nodded. Jase piped up then. ‘What about her car?” Rob laughed. “Krista didn’t have a car...she walked everywhere. Besides, here in Stoney Creek, no real need for a car.” Tim nodded, but he wasn’t done asking questions. “You remember anything about the guy...what he looked like, what his name was?” Rob nodded. “His name was Tom...at least that’s what Krista kept calling whem when she was yelling at him.” Tim nodded, as he pulled out an old picture...it was a picture of him and Krista with their Army unit...and Tom was in the picture also. Tim handed Rob the picture. “You see that guy anywhere in this picture?” Rob glanced at Tim before looking at the picture. He looked at it for a couple of minutes and then nodded. “Yep...that guy right there, right up front, first guy on the right.” Tim sighed as Rob handed him back the picture. Rob looked at him and Jase just then...a worried, uneasy expression on his face. “Is Krista ok?” Tim shook his head. “No sir, I’m afraid she isn’t. We’ll be in touch, thanks for your time.” He and Jase quickly walked out of the bar. They went behind the bar, and down the slight hill, until they reached the muddy riverbank. Tim sighed as he looked at Jase. “I’ll go right, you go left.” Jase nodded, as they turned and walked in opposite directions along the muddy riverbank.


	9. Showdown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tim and Jase find out what happened to Krista. Cheyenne and her nemesis, Master Sergeant Tom Phifer, go head to head in a showdown, and Cheyenne proves to be more of a fighter than he was prepared for.

Jase and Tim had each walked about three miles in opposite directions along the muddy banks of the Stoney Creek River. Jase had come up on a wide section of it, that couldn’t be seen from the road due to the steep sloping hills that surrounded it. He sighed as he came upon a site he was hoping not to find. There, in the middle of the river, that was thankfully low due to the lack of rainfall the area had been suffering through lately, he saw a large, random pile of wood. Knowing what he’d probably find, he stepped into the river, and waded through muddy water that came up to about the middle of his calf. He bent over looking closely...and swore. He saw, what was now the color of the muddy water, what looked to him like part of a dress. Using his boot, he balanced on one leg, and gently lifted a piece of the woodpile up with the tip of his boot...and saw what was left of Krista Cooper. “Goddamnit.” He gently let the wood back down, and waded out of the water. When he reached the banks, he pulled his cell phone out and called Tim. 

Thirty minutes later, Tim, Jase, and Detective Morrison were at the site where Krista’s body had been found. Detective Morrison scowled at them. “And you two just happened to find her, huh?” Tim had had enough and got right in the Detective’s face. “Yeah, we did, because unlike you, we actually looked for her. You’d have found her two months ago if you’d actually done your fucking job, and checked this place out!” Jase stepped beside Tim and firmly shoved him back. “Easy...Detective Fuck Up here isn’t worth your badge, Tim.” Detective Morrison laughed. “He won’t have his badge by the end of the day.” Jase smiled menacingly at Detective Morrison. “Oh really, dude? Because from where I’m standing, this is your jurisdiction. It’s not like the body was hidden very well. Seems to me if you had actually investigated the way you should have, you’d have easily found her, long before this. So, either you’re that lousy of a detective, and couldn’t find a baseball even if it hit you in the damn face, or, you dropped the ball on this one, big time. The badge I’m worried about isn’t Tim’s...it’s yours.” Jase’s words had taken the wind out of Detective Morrison’s sails. Detective Morrison sighed, as he pulled out his cell phone. He’d have to call in the state police...Stoney Creek didn’t have the resources to deal with this. Once he got off the phone with them, he looked at Tim. “You don’t have any idea who killed her, do you?” Tim kept his poker face in place. He wasn’t about to let Morrison fuck the case up any more than he already had. Tim looked at Jase, ignoring Detective Morrison. “Jase...I’m going back into the bar for a beer while we wait for the state police. You’re welcome to join me.” And with that, Tim turned on his back on Detective Morrison. Jase grinned at Detective Morrison. “We’re going for a beer...you let us know when the big boys show up.” Jase then turned his back on a blustering Detective Morrison, who was shouting at them as they climbed back up the riverbank.

Tim sighed as he looked into his beer. He had come back into the bar with a devastated look on his face. Rob hadn’t asked any questions, just had gone to the beer tap and poured Tim and Jase each a pint of Michelob. Not Tim’s favorite beer, but, he’d deal. Tim sighed as he looked into his beer. “I’ve done death notifications before...but this is different. How the hell am I ever going to tell Cheyenne?” Jase sighed as he sipped his beer. “Well...Cheyenne already seems to think her mother’s dead. So hopefully that will take some of the shock out of it. Christ, you don’t think she actually saw the murder, do you?” Tim shook his head. “No. Not unless she lied to us, which I don’t think she did. Damnit...Krista didn’t deserve this Jase. She was a good person.” Jase nodded. “I know, bro. None of you deserve this...you don’t, Cheyenne doesn’t, and Krista sure didn’t. But bro, let me tell you something...this fucker has probably done this more than once... to more women than just Krista. Leopards like that fucker don’t change their spots. We have to get back to California...today.” Tim nodded. “You’re right. As soon as the State boys are done talking to us, we’re leaving.” Just then, two men in suits strolled into the bar, as Jase raised his eyebrows. “Looks like it’s showtime, bro.” Tim glanced over his shoulder, and sighed. He was anxious to get this over with and get back to Lucy and Cheyenne as quickly as possible. 

Back in L.A., Lucy sighed and was frowning at Grayson and Cheyenne. “I don’t think it’s a good idea, Gray.” Grayson rolled his eyes. “Luce..I have to go back to your house and get my stuff...and Sheeba’s stuff. I’ll be gone an hour, at the most.” Lucy sighed. “Then I’m coming with you.” Grayson firmly shook his head. “No, you’re not. You obviously aren’t feeling well, and couldn’t take on a toddler right now, let alone some homicidal asshole who has the training of an Army Ranger.” Cheyenne stood up. “Fine...then I’ll go with you, Grayson.” Grayson laughed. “You? Seriously? Cheyenne…” Cheyenne glared at him. “I know, I know...I’m sixteen. Do I need to remind you that I’m almost as tall as you are...or the fact that I outran you the other night? I could kick your ass if I had to, just so we’re clear, so stop treating me like a damn baby. Both of you stop it! I appreciate you, both of you, looking out for me, but I am goddamn sick and tired of being sheltered and protected and hidden from the entire world like I’m some sort of freak!” Not giving either of them a chance to argue or boss her around anymore, Cheyenne walked out of the front door, and slammed it...hard enough to make the windows rattle. Lucy grimaced. “Just let her go with you...you’re right, I’m just being paranoid and overprotective...of both of you. But if you’re not back in an hour, I’m calling Nolan, Harper, Lopez and West.” Grayson rolled his eyes. “We’ll be back in 45 minutes, I promise.” But...sometimes promises are hard to keep.

Cheyenne pointedly ignored Grayson as they drove over to Tim and Lucy’s. He glanced at her, and hid his smile. Yep, she was definitely pissed off. She had her arms crossed and was glaring out the passenger side window, refusing to look at him. Grayson cleared his throat. “Cheyenne...look, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to piss you off. I have no doubt you can handle yourself.” Cheyenne fixed her glare on him. “Yeah, right.” He started to say something, but she interrupted him. “You know, I managed to make it all the way from North Carolina to California, by myself, on my own.” Grayson frowned. “Yeah...and you’re damn lucky nothing happened to you on that trip. We’ll be talking about that, later.” Cheyenne rolled her eyes. “You’re not my dad, Grayson. Tim and Lucy both already fussed at me for that, anyway.” Grayson grinned at her. “Good, you deserve it.” Cheyenne rolled her eyes...but Grayson saw the smile she almost, but not quite, tried to hide. He was glad she was getting less and less mad at him.

A short time later, Grayson pulled into the driveway. He looked at Cheyenne. She rolled her eyes. “You want me to wait here, right?” Grayson shook his head. “No, actually. I need help with my stuff, and I’d rather you be where I can keep my eyes on you, just in case you get any bright ideas about trying to play Wonder Woman again. Let’s go...sooner we’re in, sooner we’re out, sooner we can eat.” Cheyenne rolled her eyes at him. “You’re always hungry.” Grayson rolled his eyes back at her. “Says the kid who goes into the kitchen for snack time less than an hour after eating a full meal.” Grayson got to the front door, and unlocked it, using the key Lucy had given him. He turned around and looked at Cheyenne. “I’m going in first, you wait just inside by the front door, got it?” Cheyenne nodded. Grayson pushed the door open, and looked around before stepping inside. He and Cheyenne stepped just inside, as he closed the front door. He turned around and looked at her. “Stay here.” Cheyenne nodded, as Grayson quickly checked out the house. It was clean...or so he thought. “Ok...if you can break down Sheeba’s crate, that will be a big help. I’m going to grab some clothes for Lucy, and grab my stuff too.” Cheyenne nodded, and began breaking down Sheeba’s metal dog crate. It didn’t take her any time at all. She decided since it was light, she’d carry it to Grayson’s truck. “Grayson? I’m going to take Sheeba’s crate out to your truck, I’ll be right back.” Grayson was in Tim and Lucy’s bathroom grabbing some toiletries for Lucy, when he heard Cheyenne call out to him. He whirled. “Cheyenne! No! Wait for me…” He started running out of the bathroom, trying to stop Cheyenne. He got halfway though the bedroom when he felt the blow. Grayson didn’t stand a chance, and crumpled to the ground. 

Cheyenne hadn’t heard Grayson’s warning, and was loading Sheeba’s crate into the truck. She figured she’d just wait in the truck since he’d probably be out any minute with his and Lucy’s things. She got inside the truck and locked it, keeping her head on a swivel, looking all around. She pulled out her cell phone and called Tim, but he didn’t answer. She left him a message, saying she missed him, and hoped everything was ok. She’d never had a cell phone before, and had bought it while on the road to California, with some of the cash she had saved up from working in that old mom and pop grocery store, gas station back in Stoney Creek. Thinking of North Carolina made her think of her mom, and her dog, and Cheyenne began to cry. She lost herself in her tears and had a really good cry as she waited for Grayson. Finally after ten minutes, she dried her face off as best as she could, and then frowned. What the hell was taking Grayson so long? Maybe he had to use the bathroom or something. Sighing, and rolling her eyes in annoyance, Cheyenne unlocked the truck, and got out of it. She shut the door, and glanced around, suddenly uneasy. Something was wrong, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. She ran to the house, and pushed open the front door...she knew being near Grayson would make her feel safe. She slammed the front door and locked it. “Grayson?” Cheyenne glanced around, and suddenly chills raced up and down her spine...the house was way too quiet. She yelled out for Grayson again...and this time, her voice came out panicked. “Grayson! Grayson! Where are you?” She pulled out her cell phone to call Lucy, and saw that Tim was actually calling her. Just as she started to answer it, something hard slammed into her wrist, causing her to drop the phone. “Ouch!” She whirled...and stared into the face of the monster who’d been chasing her. 

Master Sergeant Tom Phifer finally had the girl where he wanted her. And it’s about damn time too. The last thing Tom was expecting what for Cheyenne to be a fighter...and much to his surprise, Cheyenne began to fight him like a lioness. “You bastard! Where’s my mother?? What the hell did you to to her? Where the hell is she?!?” Cheyenne was almost as tall as Tom was, and she shoved him hard, taking him by surprise, and causing him to stumble backwards into the wall. She picked up a lamo and threw it at him...then she began throwing anything she could reach at him. Tom was swearing at the unexpected attack, trying to dodge the objects flying at him. ‘Damnit! You little bitch!” Cheyenne picked up another lamp, but this time, instead of throwing at him, she used it like a baseball bat and began to beat the shit out of Tom with it. “Where is she? You tell me right now what you did with my mother! You tell me right now!” Cheyenne was delivering blow after to blow to Tom...but it wasn’t enough. He fell to the floor, kicked her legs out from under her, and pounced on top of her. Then he clocked her hard enough to knock her out. Tom was breathing heavily. “Jesus Christ!” He rolled ofo Cheyenne and winced. Cheyenne had gotten in some really good blows, which Tom was not counting on. He angrily shook his head as he went into the bag he had brought with him...he had come prepared. He ziptied Cheyenne’s wrists and feet together, the same as he had Grayson, who was still unconscious. He was so done with Los Angeles. His original plan had been to kill Tim, and Cheyenne. But, circumstances had provided him with a new plan...and maybe a better one. With Cheyenne and her mother both dead, Tim would suffer for the rest of his life...that was far better in Tom’s eyes than just killing him. If it hadn’t been for Tim, HE could have had Krista. Tim had ruined everything. Now he could spend the rest of his life paying for it. After making sure Cheyenne was properly secured, and that Grayson was as well, Tom got the large gas can out of the large bag he had brought with him. He began pouring gas all over the living room and kitchen. He stared at the unconscious Cheyenne briefly. She had definitely gotten his height...but everything else was her mother. He had never wanted kids, and would be glad to be rid of this one. He had only threatened to take her from Krista to use it as a way to get Krista for himself. When that hadn’t worked, Tom had gone into a rage, and killed Krista instead. He had no use for his daughter now. After emptying the gas can, Tom struck a match, and dropped it in the corner of the kitchen. Then he climbed out the kitchen window, jumped off the deck, and was gone.

Lucy was pacing back and forth. Neither Cheyenne nor Grayson were answering her calls. She was feeling much better now after she had puked. Tim’s voice came ringing through her mind, as it always did when she felt like trouble was brewing. “Always go with your gut, Boot.” Lucy had had enough, and grabbed her purse and car keys, and her gun. She ran out of Grayson’s house, leaving Sheeba inside, and hoping she didn’t cause too much destruction. She whipped out her cell phone and called Nolan, West, Harper, and Lopez. She told them that she couldn’t reach Grayson or Cheyenne, and was headed over to Tim’s to make sure everything was ok. They all told her they would meet her there. 

Tim and Jase had just finished talking to the state police. Tim sighed as he looked at his phone and realized he’d missed a call from Cheyenne. He didn’t have the heart to talk to her right now. The news he had to give her needed to be shared in person, not over the phone, and he was afraid if he heard her voice she’d be able to tell something was wrong. Jase looked at him. “Let’s get some of Krista’s things while we’re here...some pictures of her mom and stuff.” Tim nodded. “Good idea. Then we’re headed back to Los Angeles. I want to get back there by tonight.” Jase nodded, as he and Tim quickly left the bar.


	10. Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cheyenne and Grayson must depend on each other in a fight to survive after Tom traps them in Tim's house and sets it on fire. Cheyenne learns what happened to her mother, and the truth about whether Tim is her father or not. Her new life in California begins...and Grayson has a surprise for Cheyenne.

Cheyenne was the first one to regain consciousness. She was coughing and choking...what the hell? Suddenly she heard the crackling noise of the fire, and her eyes popped open. She sat up, and realized Tim’s house was on fire. Holy shit! Cheyenne glanced helplessly around...she didn’t see Grayson anywhere. She looked down and realized her wrists and ankles were ziptied. She yanked her wrists hard, downward, several times. On the fifth time, she cried out in searing pain as the zipties tore into her flesh, but they finally snapped and broke. Her arms were free! She rolled over until she got to the couch, and pushed herself up onto it into a sitting position. “Grayson! Grayson!” The house was quickly burning and filling with smoke...but she couldn’t leave Grayson to burn to death. She jerked her legs in the same way she had jerked her wrists...and it freaking hurt, but she broke those zipties too. She ran into Tim and Lucy’s bedroom...and saw Grayson there on the floor...bleeding from the back of his head. She knelt down to him. “Grayson! Grayson! Get up! The house is on fire!” But Grayson didn’t utter a sound. Cheyenne looked around, frantically.. The fire had made it’s way into the living room...she was going to have to get Grayson out of the bedroom window...and fast. The adrenaline was racing through her veins as she ran to the bedroom door and slammed it shut. Then she ran to the window and opened it. She grabbed a lamp from the nightstand by the bed and smashed the screen out of the way. Then she threw the lamp aside and ran back to Grayson. She rolled him onto his back, and hefted him into a sitting position. “Damn...why you have to be so freaking heavy Grayson?” Groaning, and using all of her strength, Cheyenne managed to drag Grayson to the window. She was breathing heavily and wondering how in the hell she was supposed to get him through the window...but damn it, she’d find a way. Just then however, much to Cheyenne’s relief, Grayson’s eyes fluttered open. He began coughing heavily. “Cheyenne….what….the….hell…..” Cheyenne was gasping now from the smoke. “You can be mad at me later. We have to get out of here…that crazy fucker set the house on fire!” Cheyenne’s terrified voice sparked Grayson into action. He quickly got to his feet, the adrenaline that was now racing through him knocking down the nausea he was also feeling from his head wound. He broke his zipties in the same way Cheyenne had broken hers. He practically threw Cheyenne out the bedroom window. Then he climbed out of it himself, and all but crumpled when he landed on the ground below the window. He was so dizzy….he fought the blackness that was closing in on him. Cheyenne saw him sway on his feet, and put her arm under his shoulders for support. “Here...lean on me Grayson...I got you.” They stumbled together away from the house, all but falling to the ground in a heap in the neighbor’s yard. Cheyenne glanced at Grayson, who looked like he was about to pass out again. She crawled over to him and gently laid his head in her lap. Grayson felt totally useless...all he could do was gently pat her hand that rested on his head. Cheyenne began to cry as the neighbors began pouring out of their houses. “What happened, are you two ok?” “Fire department is on their way!” 

Cheyenne turned at the sound of people screaming her name. “Cheyenne! Grayson!” She saw Lucy, and several other cops all running straight for her and Grayson. Lucy got to them first, and was followed closely by Nolan, West, Harper, and Lopez. Lucy fell to her knees as she looked at them. “Oh Cheyenne...honey, what happened?” Cheyenne was crying so hard by then she couldn’t get the words out. Just then, the sounds of sirens began blaring through the neighborhood, and two LAFD firetrucks rolled to a stop in front of Tim’s house. The firefighters immediately sprang into action. Nolan looked down at Grayson. “He needs EMS...and we need to get on the other side of the street.” Nolan and West bent down to haul Grayson to his feet and help him across the street. Cheyenne got to her feet, and Lucy stuck to her like glue as she and Lopez flanked her on each side. Nyla was looking at Cheyenne admirably. “Cheyenne… did you get Wells here out of Tim and Lucy’s house all by yourself?” Cheyenne tearfully nodded, and then the whole story began to pour out of her. Nyla’s eyes went wide. “Nice job kid.” Then she looked at Lucy. “You stay with her...we’re going to canvas the neighborhood and see if we can find Phifer. Nolan! West! Lopez! With me!” They quickly ran up to Harper and she explained the situation. Nolan and West helped Grayson over to a firefighter who was standing by the fire engine, and he took over treating Grayson’s injuries.

It didn’t take long for them to find Phifer. Phifer’s luck had run out as he was leaving the neighborhood. One of the neighbors had seen his car casing the neighborhood several times, and had finally gotten suspicious enough to call the cops. Harper and Lopez walked up on him just as he was trying to bullshit his way out of a citation with two other LAPD officers who had answered the call for help from the neighbor. Harper walked up to the two cops she recognized, Officer Ruthie Grace, and Officer Matthew Jacobs. “Hey you two...we’ll take it from here.” Jacobs looked at Harper and smirked at her. “Says who, Harper?” Harper sent him an icy smile. “Says me...we’ve been looking for this guy for the last few days. He’s wanted for quite a lot of things...the most recent being setting Bradford’s house on fire.” Jacobs suddenly lost his sunny, smartass disposition. He glared at Tom. “You prick. Good luck with Harper. She’s not as nice as I am.” Jacobs looked at Grace who glared at Phifer as well. They finished talking to the neighbor, as Harper spun Tom around, and snapped the cuffs on him. He winced. “Could you make these any tighter? Bitch.” Harper smiled at Lopez, who smiled back at her. “I think he wants them tighter, Harper.” Harper nodded. “We certainly aim to please. I’d be happy to make these cuffs tighter for you Mr. Phifer, since you asked me so nicely.” She spun Phifer back around, with Lopez and now Jacobs too, flanking her. Harper unsnapped the cuffs, and quickly made them as tight as they would go, and then resnapped them. Jacobs looked at Harper. “We’ll take him back to the station for you.” Harper nodded. “Fine...but watch him. Do not let him out of your sight. I have a feeling by the end of the shift, people from other states will be wanting a word with him as well.” Jacobs nodded, as Grace let out a low whistle. “Whoa dude...sounds like you fucked up pretty good.” Tom Phifer closed his eyes, and knew his life was basically over. He hoped Tim was the one who had found Krista...at least he could have that.

Grayson’s house was now extremely crowded. Tim’s house hadn’t been a total loss, but the kitchen and living room had been heavily damaged. It would take weeks to repair. So until then, no one could live in it. Which meant he and Lucy and Cheyenne were currently crashing with Grayson. Tim and Jase had landed in L.A. at almost 11pm. Nyla and Lucy and Cheyenne had picked them up at the airport. Cheyenne had run to Tim as soon as she’d spotted him, and hadn’t let go of him since. Tim didn’t care if she wasn’t biologically his. He’d come to love her as if she was, and Lucy had as well. Tim had no idea how he was supposed to tell her everything that had he had discovered while in North Carolina. But all of that could wait it seemed, after Tim had been told about everything that had gone down in L.A. while he’d been gone. 

Lucy and Cheyenne were each snuggled up to Tim, one on each side of him, fast asleep, on the couch. Tim looked at Greyson. “Wells...thank you for taking care of my girls.” Grayson smiled. “It was no trouble at all. And honestly, they took care of me...especially the blonde one on your right. She saved my life.” Tim grinned at him, as he pressed a kiss into Cheyenne’s hair. Cheyenne didn’t move...she was exhausted. Tim sighed. “So listen...I have to tell Cheyenne some things tomorrow, and it’s going to be hard for her to hear. I want you there with me when I tell her.” Grayson frowned. “Why me?” Tim smiled at him. “Cheyenne grew up without a lot...including any friends. You seem to be her new best friend, and right now, she needs all the friends she can get...especially after what I tell her tomorrow.” Grayson sighed and closed his eyes. He lowered his voice and whispered as he looked back at Tim. “Krista?” The smile fell from Tim’s face, and he slowly shook his head. Grayson’s heart broke for Cheyenne. It was hell to lose your mom, so young in life. But then he realized that just like him, Cheyenne may have lost her mom, but she had also gained an entire family. At least, he hoped she had. He looked at Tim. “You can’t put her into foster care Tim. She doesn’t deserve that, not after everything she’s been through. You have to find another way.” Tim nodded in agreement with him. “Don’t worry...I have.” On the way to the airport in North Carolina, Tim had been busy making plans for Cheyenne. He knew that with his and Lucy’s schedules, and now they’re house hunting, on top of trying to plan a wedding and start a family, they wouldn’t be able to provide the type of stability Cheyenne would need to adjust to her new life. But he knew exactly who could do that. The arrangements had already been made, and Monica had helped fast track some paperwork. Cheyenne wouldn’t be going into foster care. Tim just hoped she liked the plans he had made for her. 

The next day, Tim, Cheyenne, and Grayson were walking along Sunset Beach. Tim had told her that he had some news to tell her, and Cheyenne had asked if they could go to the beach for her to hear it. Tim at first hadn’t wanted to do that, he thought of it as his and Cheyenne’s special place and didn’t want it tarnished. But Cheyenne said she needed a place to feel safe to hear the news, and she felt safest there. So, that’s where they had wound up. Tim had just dropped the bombs on her that her mom was gone, and that he wasn’t her father, and who her father actually was. That had been fifteen minutes ago, and Cheyenne was still standing with her feet in the Pacific, looking out at the water, processing that life as she had known it, was over. Tim stared at her from where he was sitting on the sand. Grayson glanced over at him. Tim sighed. “You’re up, Wells.” Grayson nodded, and got to his feet. He had only needed some stitches from where that prick had clocked him over the head. He’d be back on duty in a couple of days.

Grayson walked over to Cheyenne, who didn’t look at him. She kept staring at the Pacific. Grayson looked out over the calm water, and sighed. “Tough break, Chey. I’m really sorry.” Cheyenne just nodded. She held her arms wrapped tightly around her. “I really wanted Tim to be my dad. Not that horrible man who killed my mama.” Grayson sighed as he turned to Cheyenne and pulled her into his arms. Cheyenne sobbed. “I really miss my mama, Grayson. Why did I have to lose everything?” Cheyenne pulled back from him as he shook his head at her. “You didn’t lose everything Cheyenne. I know your lost your mom, and I’m really, really sorry for that. It sucks, and it’s going to hurt for a long time. But you didn’t lose everything. You’ve still got me. And look over there…” He turned Cheyenne in the direction of Tim’s worried gaze. “You’ve still got Tim. He loves you like you are his daughter, and that’s not going to stop. Lucy loves you too. We all do...you’re not alone. Remember what I told you the other day about not expecting the worst from people? That applies here.” She looked back at Grayson. “What if he doesn’t want me anymore? I’m not his.” Grayson smiled at her. “You don’t know that...like I said before, go ask him.” Cheyenne looked at Grayson, unsure, but she trusted Grayson, so, she’d gathered her courage and asked Tim. In answer to her question, Tim had simply pulled her into his arms, and held her for a long, long time. 

Two days later, Cheyenne, Tim, and Lucy were pulling up in front of Colonel Stephen Bradford’s new house. He and his ex wife had patched things up, and were living together again, in a new house in Ojai. Tim couldn’t bear the thought of losing Cheyenne in foster care like he had lost his sister. But he also knew he and Lucy couldn’t give Cheyenne the home she needed right now. So he had turned to the next best thing...his parents. After hearing Cheyenne’s story, Stephen and Katherine had realized they had been given a golden opportunity to help Cheyenne the way someone had once helped their own daughter, who had been snatched out of their lives so long ago, but was finally how happily reunited with them. They had jumped at the opportunity to become Cheyenne’s adoptive parents, especially after meeting her. Cheyenne hadn’t been sure it was a great idea, until Tim’s sister, Sydney had talked to her, one on one. Sydney had told Cheyenne about what had happened to her. Sydney had smiled at Cheyenne after finishing her story. “You already are one of us, Cheyenne. You already have our last name...you were born with it. You may not have the same DNA as we do, but you are a Bradford in all the ways that matter, and always have been, Cheyenne. You’re a part of our family, and we want you to make it official. But it’s up to you.” After hearing that, Cheyenne had realized that Grayson was right...some people can surprise you, in the best of ways. And there was still one more surprise coming Cheyenne’s way, courtesy of Grayson. 

Stephen and Katharine had planned a big Welcome Into The Family cookout for Cheyenne. Everyone was there...Tim and Lucy, Nyla and Jase and Nyla’s daughter, Lila, Sydney, her husband, and their children. Monica and Sgt. Grey, John and Grace, Wesley and Angela and their baby boy Timothy, and Jackson and Sterling. Everyone was there...except, Cheyenne had noted, Grayson. Everyone had just finished eating, and Kojo was enjoying all of his new friends. Everyone had gathered on the back deck, to watch the surprise for Cheyenne. Cheyenne was laughing. “What are you all up to?” Tim smiled at her. “We have one more surprise for you...and it should be arriving any time now.” Just then, Cheyenne heard another car pull up, and she leaned over the railing. Tim yanked her back. “Instead of giving me a heart attack, why don’t you go down into the yard and see what it is.” Cheyenne rolled her eyes, but quickly raced for the stairs and jogged down them. She ran into the backyard that the deck overlooked. She smiled up at Tim, who, along with everyone else, was watching her. She saw Grayson get out of his truck, and he waved at her. Cheyenne frowned, and looked back up at Tim. She new how to needle him, and proceeded to do just that. “Grayson is my surprise?” Tim frowned at her, as Lucy burst out laughing. “No, smartass, but you might want to turn and look now.” Cheyenne frowned at Tim and looked back at Grayson...just in time to see her surprise running towards her. 

Cheyenne took off, screaming at the top of her lungs. “Oh my gosh! Honey! Oh Honey, I missed you so much, girl!” Cheyenne dropped to her knees as she and her dog were finally reunited. Cheyenne buried her face in Honey’s golden fur and cried. “Oh I missed you so much girl...I’m so glad you’re ok.” Cheyenne looked up and saw Grayson walking towards her, a big grin on her face. She flew at him and jumped into his arms. She was almost as tall as him and about knocked him flat. Cheyenne was laughing and crying. “Oh thank you so much, Grayson. I missed her so much. I was so afraid something had happened to her. How did you even do this?” Grayson hugged her, and then eased back and smiled at her. “Lots of help from Jase, actually. It was my idea, but he executed it.” Cheyenne turned and looked at the crowd of smiling faces. “Thank You Jase!” Jase smiled at her as he lifted Lila into his arms. “You’re welcome, sweetheart.” Honey was barking and running around Cheyenne’s feet, which brought an excited Kojo flying down the stairs. Tim raced after him. “Kojo! Heel!” Kojo ignored Tim and ran up to Honey, sniffing her. After about five seconds, Kojo and Honey decided they were best buddies, and trotted off together, leaving their humans to fend for themselves. 

Grayson looked at Cheyenne and smiled at her. “I never let an opportunity pass to tell you, or anyone honestly, when I’m right.” Cheyenne rolled her eyes. “Right? What were you right about?” He glanced at Tim then, and then up at the deck full of smiling people. Cheyenne laughed as she wrapped one arm around Grayson’s waist, and the other arm around Tim’s waist. “Ok, ok, you were right Grayson.” And indeed Grayson had been right. Cheyenne wasn’t alone anymore, and had found her family, at long last.


	11. Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cheyenne is thriving, three months after the horrible events that changed her life. She's now a college athlete, at Pepperdine University, she has a ton of friends, and even a boyfriend. But Cheyenne finds that it's harder to let go of her past than she thought it would be, and she turns to the one person she knows would understand that better than anyone, for advice.

Three months later, Cheyenne was absolutely thriving. She was enrolled at Pepperdine University. She had earned a full academic scholarship that would pay for all four years of college. On a whim, she had decided to try out for their women’s volleyball team. And as it turns out, Cheyenne was one hell of an athlete. She had made the varsity team, and their season was in full swing. Cheyenne had made lots of friends, and even had a boyfriend now, much to Tim and the Colonel’s dismay. Lucy liked him, Tim tolerated him, and Grayson...well, Grayson did a very good job of convincing Cheyenne he liked him. 

The gymnasium was packed...with fans, students, faculty, and family. The volleyball game was in it’s fifth, and last, set, as Grayson came jogging down the steps in the gymnasium. He had been promising Cheyenne all season he’d come to one of her games...but unfortunately, due to work, this had been the first time he’d been able to make it to a game. He found Tim and Lucy and Stephen and Katharine crammed into the bleachers, and thankfully there was a seat next to Lucy that she’d been saving for him. Lucy turned to him and grinned as Grayson sat down next to her, catching his breath. “You ran from the parking lot?” Grayson rolled his eyes. “Yeah...I didn’t want to let her down. I know this is a big game, and I’ve already missed most of it. I’ve been promising her all season I’d make it to a game and I haven’t yet. I got held up on a stupid drug bust...that turned out to be a total bust.” Grayson rolled his eyes as Lucy laughed. Lucy and Tim tried to schedule their off days around Cheyenne’s volleyball schedule. Grayson frowned as he looked out at the court. “I don’t see Chey.” Lucy smiled into her coke. “She’s about to go back in.” 

The game that Pepperdine University was playing against Lee University was a big one. Winner got a ticket to the West Coast Conference Tournament. Loser would see their volleyball season come to an end. Coach Faulkner went up to Cheyenne. “You’re going back in Bradford...get in there and finish this.” He gave her a stern look...Cheyenne gave him a big smile in return. She nodded, and ran to the edge of the court. The ref paused the game and blew his whistle, allowing for the players to sub in and out. Cheyenne ran onto the court, and tagged her teammate that she was substituting for. She took her place on the court, just as the ref blew the whistle, signaling for the game to continue. The spectators were clapping and cheering. Grayson cupped his hands and yelled at Cheyenne. “Let’s go for it, Bradford!” Even though the gym was loud with people cheering for both teams, Cheyenne smiled. She’d know that voice anywhere. She didn’t look at him, she was concentrating on the game, but it meant the world to her that Grayson had made it for her biggest game of the season so far.

The fifth set continued, but it was a close one. Each team was holding on. As soon as Cheyenne’s team would score a point, the other team would score a point. Cheyenne glanced at the scoreboard and saw that her team was ahead. The score was 19-18. In volleyball, the winner must win the set by two points. And Cheyenne knew, this was it. It was match point for her team. If her team won this point...they won it all. The player from the opposing team served the ball over the net. Cheyenne’s teammate jumped up and blocked the ball...but the ball was saved by the opposing team, and sent back over the net. Susie, Cheyenne’s teammate, got to the ball first, and saved it from hitting the floor, making the crowd go wild. She sent the ball to the setter, whose name was Carly. Carly set a perfect pass to Cheyenne and yelled at her. “Cheyenne...it’s you!” Cheyenne, who played the position of outside hitter, made her approach short. She jumped high into the air, and brought her right arm over her head and shoulder back...then she slammed her arm forward hard into the volleyball, sending it over the net, and high over the other team. It sailed through the air and landed in the back left corner of the volleyball court...just inside the line. Cheyenne landed on her feet and watched with wide eyes as she saw where the ball had landed.

The crowd jumped to it’s feet and roared, cheering and clapping. The referee blew his whistle, and the game was over...and Cheyenne and her team had officially won the game and sealed their spot in the West Coast Conference Tournament. Cheyenne’s team swarmed her, as the bleachers emptied. The coach threw his fists up into the air and broke out into a wide grin. Soon the volleyball court was packed with students, and family members, cheering loudly for the victory.

Grayson, Tim, and Lucy bolted for the gym floor as Cheyenne’s team surrounded her. They were all clapping and laughing and cheering each other. Coach Faulkner went up to Cheyenne. “Way to kill it, Bradford. That was one hell of a shot.” Cheyenne grinned at him...and then she spotted her family. She ran towards them. “Dad! Dad! Did you see it?” She jumped into Tim’s arms, as he laughed and spun her around in his arms. He smiled hugely at her. “I sure did baby...we all did. We’re so proud of you and your team!” He hugged her hard, as did Lucy, who always drowned in Cheyenne hugs, because Cheyenne was so much taller than Lucy. Even though she was technically his sister now, Cheyenne and Tim thought of each other as father and daughter, and Cheyenne had begun calling him dad not long after she’d been adopted by the Colonel and his wife, whom she called nana and pops. She loved Stephen and Katharine deeply...but Tim and Lucy would always be mom and dad to her. Then Cheyenne jumped out of Tim’s arms and all but clobbered Grayson. “We did it! We did it! We’re going to Conference!” He hugged her hard before he sat her back down on her feet. “You sure did kid...nice shot.” Cheyenne rolled her eyes at him. “That’s not my name.” Grayson tugged on her ear. “Says who?” Cheyenne rolled her eyes again as her teammates came to join her. Tim glanced up as his parents came to join them on the gym floor. Cheyenne ran over to them and hugged them. Stephen hugged her hard. “Way to go young lady...we’re so proud of you!” Katharine laughed as Cheyenne towered over her, and pulled her off her feet for a hug. “You did so great Chey!”

Tim and Lucy smiled at each other as they watched Cheyenne. She had come such a long way in such a short time. Tim had one last thought to himself, as Cheyenne came running back to him. ‘You’d be so proud of her, Krista.’ He glanced down at Lucy...who always seemed to know what he was thinking. “She’s here, Tim...and you’re right. She would be very proud of Cheyenne.” Tim just grinned, and kissed Lucy on her forehead, before Cheyenne jumped into his arms again. 

The next day, Cheyenne was waiting in the parking lot of the gym. She had volleyball practice to get to, but she had texted Grayson to ask him if he’d come meet her briefly before practice. Grayson had agreed to meet her after his shift had ended. Cheyenne saw him pull into the parking lot, and walked to his truck as he parked it. He got out of it, and walked to her. He smiled at her. “What’s up, Chey?” Cheyenne sighed as she looked around. She was doing ok, mostly...except she really missed her mom. She looked back at Grayson. “Gray...can I ask you a question?” Grayson tilted his head to the side, curious. He shrugged his shoulders. “Sure.” Cheyenne looked at him. “Do you ever miss your mom?” Grayson had been expecting a lot of things when Cheyenne asked to meet..but that was definitely not one of them. He pushed the emotions and tears down. “Sure...every minute of every day.” Cheyenne just nodded and looked down at the ground. “I miss my mom like that too...and sometimes it’s really hard.” Grayson just nodded as Cheyenne sighed and glanced around, before looking back at him. “How do you get past it?” Grayson leaned against his truck, and looked out over the campus. He sighed, as Cheyenne leaned against his truck too. “You don’t get past it Chey. You learn how to carry it with you in such a way that it doesn’t overwhelm your life. It’s ok to miss your mom, Chey. Just don’t let it define you.” Cheyenne nodded...she got that. She hesitantly looked at him. “When it does get really hard...can I call you? I promise I won’t blow up your phone.” Grayson laughed. “Yes...you can call me when you need to talk, Chey...and you already do blow up my phone.” He looked at her then as she looked at him, and they laughed. But their laughter faded away, and an almost awkward silence followed. Grayson sighed, and was about to say something when Cheyenne interrupted him. “Well, thanks for coming all the way out here, Grayson. I appreciate it. But, I better go...I have volleyball practice.” Grayson turned to face her and nodded. He looked away, trying to get control of his emotions. He knew what Cheyenne was going through...he had gone through it himself. He looked back at her with a look of pride on his face. “You keep that up, Chey. You’re really good at it...I mean really good.” Cheyenne smiled at him. He walked to her and tugged on her ear, which had kind of become their thing. “You’re going to be ok, kid.” Cheyenne nodded as she picked up her bag that had her volleyball items in it. “I better go.” Grayson nodded, as Cheyenne turned and started to walk away. He watched her walk away, and felt a tug on his heart. She had been through hell and back, at such a young age. But she seemed to be on a better path now...and if he played even a small part in that, he was glad of that. He started to turn to get back into his truck, when he heard her call his name. “Grayson!” He whirled, and was just in time to catch Cheyenne, as she came running back to him as fast as she could. She hugged him hard, and he hugged her back just as hard. “Thank you, Grayson...for everything you did for me.” Grayson smiled and nodded, and squeezed her before letting her go. Cheyenne backed out of his arms, smiling at him. “See you, around, Grayson.” He smiled back at her. “Yeah, you will.” Cheyenne ran to grab her gym bag, and hurried off into the gym. Grayson climbed back into his truck…and smiled. He had finally found his tribe when he had come to L.A...and he was glad to have played a part in helping Cheyenne finally find hers.

THE END


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